A Different Shade of Pale
by CheerfulChemist
Summary: This is an AU story that begins during Vampire Weekend after Castle is bitten by Morgan Lockerby. Lanie shook her head. "I don't think an anti-psychotic will do it. His red blood cells are breaking down. So is the melanin in his skin that should protect him from sunlight and Kate, his incisors are growing." I own nothing Castle, Rating upped to M for Chapter 71.
1. Chapter 1

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 1

"He bit me!" Castle yelped as Morgan Lockerby covered his rapidly blistering face with his hands.

Esposito looked on in disbelief as Lockerby's skin charred in the rays of sun leaking into the crypt. "He really is a vampire!"

Castle gazed in horror at the blood on his fingers as he pulled his hand away from the twin wounds on his neck. "And now I'm going to be one too."

"Don't be ridiculous Castle," Beckett chided. "And Espo, seriously? There's no such thing as vampires. The guy is just crazy. The fangs are probably from Castle's friend, the dentist to the bloodsucking stars."

"Dr. Frank's dentistry doesn't make anyone ignite," Castle protested. "I'm going to have to live at night like Stephen King, only more so. I can never see the daylight again. I wonder if there's a butcher who delivers fresh blood. Maybe a blood bank."

"Castle, even if this guy is a vampire, which he isn't, he'd have to give you some of his blood to bring you over," Beckett argued.

"Only in some cosmologies," Castle pointed out. "In others all it takes is a bite - or ugh! I could start eating bugs like Renfield. Well, they are supposed to taste a little like lobster. Still..." Castle gave a little shudder.

"Look Castle," Beckett proposed, "we'll take you back and have Lanie look at you. If you're turning into a vampire she should be able to see some signs of it."

"Alright," Castle agreed grudgingly, "But you need to cover me with a blanket or something. I don't want to develop a good sear on the way."

"Fine," Beckett agreed, rolling her eyes.

Lanie left Castle sitting on her table in the morgue and called to Beckett. "Kate, we have a problem."

"You mean besides Castle being convinced he's turning into a vampire?" Kate asked. "Should I take him to Bellevue for a shot of an anti-psychotic?"

Lanie shook her head. "I don't think an anti-psychotic will do it. His red blood cells are breaking down. So is the melanin in his skin that should protect him from sunlight and Kate, his incisors are growing."

Beckett stared at her friend wondering if Lanie was the one who needed an anti-psychotic. "Lanie, are you trying to tell me that Castle is turning into a vampire?"

Lanie sighed. "I don't know exactly what I'm telling you Kate, but there is something very wrong with Castle. You should take him to a hospital - and don't let any sunlight hit him."

Beckett looked down at a Castle almost as pale as the hospital sheet he was lying on. Blood flowed into his arm through an IV. "How do you feel?" she asked.

"Like I've turned into a divorce lawyer," Castle quipped. "I have a constant craving to suck someone's blood."

Beckett gently took his hand, rubbing her thumb across the chalky skin. "I'm sorry Castle. I was supposed to protect you. This shouldn't have happened."

Castle reached up, his knuckles lightly brushing her cheekbone. "Kate, I've always known that shadowing you was dangerous, even before the N.Y.P.D. lawyers made me sign their avalanche of paper. I just thought if something penetrated my body, it would be a knife or a bullet, not a set of fangs. I didn't really believe in vampires anymore than you did. Neither one of us saw anything like this coming."

Kate knew she shouldn't allow the implied intimacy of his touch, but she had no power to pull away. She and Castle were opposite poles. The attraction was inexorable.

Castle plunged his fingers into the soft silk of Beckett's hair, bringing her face closer to his. "You still smell like cherries. And there's a hint of vanilla too. I think all my senses are sharper. I can feel the blood flowing in your veins and see the heat radiating from your body. Wow, your cheeks just got hotter."

Beckett forced herself to step back. "I'm sure you think you feel those things, Castle. Who knows what this infection, or whatever it is, is doing to your brain. Lanie still has no idea what happened to Lockerby or to you."

"Neither do the doctors here," Castle said. "Except that they do, and so do you. I was bitten by a vampire and I've turned. It's just that no one's willing to admit it."

"I'll never admit it, Castle," Beckett declared. "I'm going to find out what really happened to you and find a way to help you." Beckett strode determinedly from the room.

* * *

Manacled and flanked by well-muscled orderlies, a now calmer Morgan Lockerby sat across a table from Kate Beckett. "I'm sorry about your friend," Lockerby said. "I've never wanted to hurt anyone."

"What about Crow?" Beckett asked. "Why did you kill him?"

"I didn't kill Crow," Lockerby protested. "I tried to help him. I tried to pull the stake out of his heart, but the smell of the blood brought the madness. I couldn't control what I did. I had to drink some. I wanted to chase after her, but I couldn't."

"You wanted to chase after her?" Beckett repeated. "Who?"

"I don't know who she was, but Crow did. She was blond. She had spots. Crow said she killed his angel Adora. She called him a wicked boy and said she should have killed him then."

"When?" Beckett prodded.

Lockerby shook his shaggy mane. "I don't know, but Crow knew. Then he died. And I was lost to the blood."

Kate gazed at the eyes, once wild, now sincere and remorseful. "Why were you lost to the blood Mr. Lockerby?"

"None of you, none of you can believe what's before your eyes." Lockerby stared unblinkingly at Beckett's face. "Detective, I'm a vampire. And I'm so sorry I couldn't fight the madness, but now your friend is a vampire too."

As the orderlies led Lockerby back to the prison ward, Beckett sat, trying to make sense of what she'd heard. There were no vampires. They were fictional constructs that drew teenage girls to movies with pale-skinned heartthrobs. Lockerby was no vampire. He had delusions caused by some illness. That illness and those delusions had been passed on to Castle. But there had to be a cure, or at least a way to fight it.

Castle! As the thought of him invaded her mind, she felt the irresistible tug she'd felt as she stood by his bed. She needed to see him, touch him, know that he was real, not some figment of a writers imagination. Her feet could take her nowhere but back to his side.

Beckett arrived in Castle's room to find him spitting into a cup held by Lanie Parish. "What?"

Lanie capped the cup and sealing it in a plastic bag, turned toward her friend. "Oh Kate, this thing of Castle's has been driving me crazy. So I did a search. And I found something. Symptoms like Castle's have been seen before. Most of the time the doctors reporting them were dismissed as quacks or just plain crazy. But if they were taken seriously, the patients were diagnosed with a variety of psychoses or even rabies, because of the biting. That started me thinking. If a rabies infection is spread through saliva, whatever Castle has might be too. So I'm sending this to the School of Public Health at Columbia, the CDC, and anyone else I can think of. Girlfriend, if there's a solution out there, we'll find it."

Beckett pulled Lanie into a hug. "Thank you."

Lanie picked up her bag from a chair by Castle's bed. "Alright, I'll leave you two to - whatever."

Castle settled back against his pillow. Beckett couldn't keep her fingers from brushing back the errant strands of hair that had fallen across his forehead. "See Castle, science. You're not the victim of a supernatural manifestation. This is a disease, and diseases have cures."

"Not all of them."Castle pointed out. "But this one does have a treatment. The doctors here said if I get a transfusion every couple of days, they think I can go home. But Kate, I don't want to go home. My mother and Alexis are there. What if I go crazy like Lockerby? I could hurt them. Worse, I could infect them."

The words jumped from Beckett's mouth without conscious thought. "You can stay with me."

"Kate," Castle protested, "much as I've eagerly awaited the invitation over the past year, I can't take it now. You wouldn't be safe."

Beckett could feel the anguish pouring from the blue depths of his eyes. "Castle, how many bad guys have you seen me take down? I can take you any day. And I have a gun. I even sleep with it."

"You'd shoot me?"

Beckett's mouth quirked. "Nothing lethal," she assured him. "I'd do as little damage as possible. But I can stop you. You know I can. So, roomies?"

Castle's hand found her cheek, stroking it lightly. "Roomies."


	2. Chapter 2

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 2

Despite the unseasonal heat, the New York cabbie paid scant attention to the man covered from head to foot in heavy fabric, with eyes hidden behind welder's goggles. Kate Beckett however, seemed worth a look, as his eyes scanned up the long legs to the beautiful but impatient face. Letting Castle slide into the protection of the taxi ahead of her, Beckett hurriedly gave her address to the man at the wheel. "How are you doing Castle?" she asked as he stirred nervously beside her.

"So far, so good," he reported, "although this get-up is much better suited for the Himalayas than New York."

"Well you may be hot," Beckett responded, a double meaning immediately flashing through her brain, "but at least you're not burning. Still it would probably be better if you limited your time outside to the night shift, until Lanie and your doctors can get this thing sorted out."

" _If_ they get this thing sorted out," Castle corrected glumly. "The medical examiner on _Forever Knight_ tried for years to come up with a cure for Nick, with no luck at all. In fact Nick ended up killing her."

"Castle, that was fiction! We're in the real world, not _Crime Time After Primetime_. You'll get your transfusions and you'll be fine.

They rode in silence until the cab double parked in front of Beckett's building. Beckett reached for her purse but Castle was faster with his wallet. "At least I can do this." Beckett nodded, allowing Castle to hand over the fare and a substantial tip.

As Beckett approached the front door of her building, a costumed couple exited. "It's almost Halloween," Castle realized. "They must be going to a party. No wonder the cab driver was so blasé about the way I'm dressed. He must have thought I was in costume. I'm supposed to be having my annual party in two nights. I need to get in touch with everyone and cancel. Ironic, isn't it. I could be the best Dracula ever. I even have an opera cape."

"You still can," Beckett suggested. "When Martha and I talked about you staying with me when I picked up some of your things, she told me she's going ahead with the party. She said the caterers are doing all the work anyway and she wants to keep things as normal as possible for Alexis. It'll be at night. You should go."

Castle shook his head doubtfully as they made their way into the elevator. "What if something happens? What if I...?"

Beckett laid a calming hand on his arm. "Nothing's going to happen. As long as you get your transfusions you should be all right. But even if it does, I'll be right there with you. Ryan and Esposito will be there too. We can take care of it and get you out of there. Your guests will probably think it's just part of the show. Since you're staying with me, you should take the chance to see your family and your friends." The doors to the elevator opened and Beckett reached for her key. "Think about it Castle."

Castle looked around Beckett's eclectic flat. "One bedroom?"

"The couch is pretty comfortable, Castle. I've fallen asleep on it myself when I was too tired to get ready for bed," Beckett admitted.

Castle picked up a throw pillow, breathing in the scent. "I can tell. More cherries. Thanks. It'll be great."

Beckett shifted uncomfortably, suddenly unsure of what to do next. "I can get you some blankets if you want to rest, or are you hungry? There's not much in the refrigerator but we can order in."

"Beckett, I don't need to rest. I slept most of the day. The sun will be going down soon and I'm just beginning to be really alert. If you want something to eat, please go ahead, but they tried getting food into me in the hospital. Other than a still mooing steak Esposito snuck in for me, I couldn't get it down. I don't want anything. Tell you what. You get whatever you want, and we can discuss the case. You must have more leads by now."

Beckett rummaged in the refrigerator, finding a carton of leftover Moo Goo Gai Pan. She grabbed a pair of chopsticks and settled opposite Castle at her small kitchen table. "Ryan and Esposito have been hunting for Crow's friend Damon. No luck yet. I talked to Morgan Lockerby but what he said didn't make much sense. He said a woman with blond hair and spots killed Crow after Crow accused her of killing his angel."

"There was an angel in Crow's graphic novel," Castle recalled. "maybe it had something to do with that. But a woman with spots? Hives? A bad case of acne?"

Beckett shrugged. "I don't know Castle. Lockerby could have killed Crow himself and just imagined the rest of it. There may be no woman or angel. Who knows what was going on in his mind? He talked about a blood madness - and he has been committed before."

"Blood madness," Castle repeated. "That sounds ominous."

Beckett touched his hand. "It doesn't have to be. Lanie told me that if he needed blood and didn't get it, his brain would be oxygen starved. That could lead to all kinds of crazy things. And he was that way for a long time. But Castle, you're getting blood. Your brain should be fine and you seem to be thinking clearly to me - except for still believing you're a vampire." Beckett's phone chimed. "Sorry. It's Esposito, I have to get it."

Beckett listened for a moment before responding that she'd be there, and ending the call. "Ryan and Esposito found Crow's friend Damon. He's a werewolf. And he's dead. Will you be all right here?"

" A werewolf! If it weren't for - you know - this case would be totally awesome. I could go with you," Castle suggested hopefully. "It should be getting dark about now."

"Castle are you sure?"

"Kate, If I just sit around here while you're out at a murder scene, I will go crazy. Hey! My vampire senses could pick up on something you miss. C'mon Beckett! If you think I'd be safe at a party, I should be okay in room full of cops."

Beckett couldn't help smiling at his new found enthusiasm."So now you're the one plying me with logic? Okay Castle. The murder scene it is."

Castle recoiled as the smell of decaying flesh and aging Thai food assaulted his nostrils. "This is not a fresh murder."

Lanie looked up from the body in surprise. "Castle I didn't expect to see you, but gold star. Damon here has been dead for a couple of days. In fact, he was killed a couple of hours before Matthew Freeman, Crow."

"Silver bullet?" Castle inquired.

Lanie shook her head. "Nine millimeter."

Castle regarded the body in disappointment. "Not a real werewolf. I guess that makes sense. If he were, he and Crow would have been sworn enemies - in some universes anyway."

"We found his ID," Esposito reported. "His real name is Jonas Westfall. He was a graduate student at NYU in forensic anthropology. One hundred percent human."

"Searching old bones for clues," Castle quipped, hunkering down beside Lanie and scanning the room. He spotted a corner of tape hanging from the bottom of a drafting table. Scooting across the floor in a crouch, he discovered that the tape was securing an envelope. "Beckett, over here. It looks like he might have found some."

Kate joined him beneath the table, savoring her proximity to Castle. She snapped a picture of the envelope before removing it and spreading the contents on the table. Castle paged through them with her, as Ryan and Esposito looked on from behind. Castle held up the picture of the reconstructed face of an unknown murder victim. "Beckett, this is the face of the angel in Crow's graphic novel."

"That must be the angel Lockerby said Crow was talking about," Beckett realized. "Castle, if he was telling the truth about that, he might have been telling the truth about a woman murdering Crow, too." She grabbed Castles arm. "He's not crazy."

And maybe I won't be either," Castle murmured.


	3. Chapter 3

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 3

"We need to get the Freemans in again," Beckett declared. "They have to know more than they're telling."

"We'll go get them," Ryan agreed, ushering Esposito towards the door.

"Good," Beckett responded. "C'mon Castle, I'll drop you home."

"No way!" Castle objected. "If I can be here, I can be at the Twelfth. Kate, right now all we have is a bunch of unconnected pieces. I need to know how they all connect."

"Fine," Beckett conceded grudgingly, "but you watch from observation," she insisted, afraid that just having Castle next to her would be too much of a distraction. "I can't worry about you and the interrogation at the same time."

"Why Kate Beckett, you're actually worried about me," Castle teased, "I'm touched."

Beckett turned away, shaking her head. "C'mon Castle. If you're coming, let's go." She shivered slightly before reaching the protection of the car.

"Cold?" Castle asked, pulling off his jacket to drape around her shoulders. "It looks like the warm-up was temporary. This is a lot like it was the night Crow was killed."

Beckett pulled the jacket around her, hoping Castle wouldn't notice her deep inhalation of the musky male essence infusing the wool. She handed it back to him when she slid behind the wheel. "I can put the heat on."

Ryan and Esposito brought Alan and Janice Freeman and their daughter Rosie into the precinct not long after Castle and Beckett arrived. Beckett sat opposite them in interrogation. "I'm sorry this isn't as comfortable as the lounge," she apologized. "But there was a little accident in there. The janitor is cleaning up."

"It's fine," Alan Freeman assured her. "Anything we can do to help."

Beckett held up the picture of the woman she found in Jonas' papers. "Does she look familiar to you?"

Rosie gazed at the image in wonder. "Matthew drew her all the time. He said he dreamed about her. He called her his angel. She's real?"

Sweat dotted Janice Freeman's forehead and she slipped off her coat.

Castle stared at the garment draped over the back of the blond Janice Freeman's chair. It was faux leopard, the reigning must-have in the fashion world. He banged his fist on the window.

Beckett pressed her lips together at the noise. "Excuse me. I'll just be a minute," she told the Freemans, rising from her place at the table to investigate.

"Castle, what the hell?" she hissed as she closed the door behind her.

He spun toward her, excitement coloring his pale face. "Kate, Janice Freeman is blond! And the coat, those are the spots Lockerby was talking about. It was cold like it is now. She must have been wearing it. Janice Freeman is our killer."

"Castle calm down," Beckett urged. "half the women in New York are wearing leopard coats right now, not to mention leggings, scarves, and boots. Five percent of the people in this country are naturally blond with more coming out of a bottle. And why would she kill her son? That makes no sense."

"Could you just see if Lockerby can identify her?" Castle pleaded.

"Castle, even if he can, it wouldn't hold up in court. The man has a history of mental illness. He couldn't have killed Jonas; Lanie put the time of death in the daytime. But he's still the chief suspect in Matthew's murder."

Castle drew a deep breath. "Alright, can you do this? Look into the Freeman's background, See if there's anything to tie Janice to the murders."

"I'll have Ryan and Esposito start on that first thing in the morning," she agreed, absently smoothing the lapel of his jacket. "Castle, you may be wide awake right now, but the rest of us are tired. I'm going to finish up with the Freemans and then we're going home."

* * *

Castle closed his laptop in frustration. He often wrote at night. During the year he'd been following Kate around, it was almost the only time he had to write. But tonight the words wouldn't come. He couldn't spin the fiction of Nikki Heat when the real life Kate Beckett emanated from everything surrounding him. She was just on the other side of a very thin wall. He could hear the springs creak as she tossed in her sleep. The distance of a few feet was impossibly far. He wanted to touch, to caress, to cradle her in his arms. Every time he saw her face, her lips called out to his. But it was impossible. Even if she'd shown signs of wanting more intimacy, which she hadn't, he could never risk it. If Lanie was right about saliva, it might not take a bite. His kiss could doom Kate to the same darkness that held him in thrall. His hands balled into white-knuckled fists. He needed a distraction, something stupid, silly, and meaningless. He switched on the TV and an infomercial filled the screen. A man with an Asian accent was hawking a real estate scheme. He'd let those words float around him as background noise many times while spending the wee hours struggling to tame a stubborn chapter. Now he smiled wryly as he repeated the hook of the pitch, "Now I own a boat!" He relaxed in the strange comfort of the familiar entreaty.

* * *

Castle checked his phone. It was six thirty. The sun wouldn't rise until seven twenty-four. He had time before he'd have to huddle under cover to protect himself from any deadly rays that might sneak around the edges of Kate's drapes. She would be up soon. Even if he couldn't eat breakfast, she could. He surveyed the contents of the refrigerator. The eggs were just at their sell by date. They should be safe in pancakes. There was just enough milk to make batter. He checked her cabinets. She had the staples: flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, oil, vanilla. She even had a stash of chocolate chips. There was no griddle, but she had a large frying pan that would serve. He preheated it while he started coffee brewing and mixed the batter.

Pulling on a robe as she emerged from the shower, Beckett followed her nose to the kitchen. "Coffee is ready," Castle called from his station at the stove. "Breakfast will be too, in just a minute."

Beckett regarded the neatly set table and the newspaper beside her plate. "Castle you didn't have to do this."

Castle loaded the last pancake onto her plate, topped it with a smiley face, and slipped it in front of her while she sipped appreciatively from a steaming mug. "I wanted to. You're putting a roof over my head. The least I can do is feed you. I'm going to have to stock you up though. Good thing the markets are open late."

Kate popped a chocolate chip into her mouth. "I could get used to this. But I don't know about the shopping. Aren't you due for a transfusion tonight?"

Castle's smile retreated and reappeared. "I didn't want to think about that. But if you've got the time to go with me, I can do both. Maybe I can even get some pumpkins to carve. We can bring some to my party tomorrow night."

"Then you've decided to go?" Beckett asked.

Castle swept a forearm across his face in his best imitation of Bela Lugosi. "If you'll be vith me, I vouldn't miss it!"


	4. Chapter 4

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 4

As daylight approached, Beckett could see Castle's body begin to sag. "Castle, why don't you sleep in my room while I'm at the precinct? The bedroom has fewer windows than the living area and the bed's more comfortable than the couch."

Castle's eyebrows rose. "You're sure you want me in your bed?"

Beckett rolled her eyes. "Unless you'd rather I found you a coffin. It's not like I'm going to be there with you. Get some rest and I'll take you to the hospital when I get back. I can fill you in on the case while they top off your tank."

"Sounds like you've got the whole thing worked out with archetypal Beckett efficiency." Castle bent forward with a dramatic sweep of his arm. "I bow to your faultless grasp of logistics."

Beckett rapped her knuckles lightly against his bicep and headed for the door. "I'll see you later."

Castle was beginning to wish for the safety of a closed casket. The drapes in Kate's bedroom were better designed for decoration than obscuring light. He struggled to make make the fabric overlap the window frames as the first streaks of vermilion began to paint the sky. Climbing into Kate's bed he decided he could forget the coffin. Her essence clung to every thread of the linens. He pulled the Beckett-scented sheet over his head, and covered himself as best could without smothering, with her heirloom quilt. Kate surrounded him even in her absence and he drifted into Beckett-laced dreams.

* * *

"How's your new-fangy roommate doing?" Ryan inquired as Beckett arrived in the bullpen.

"Oh you know. Up all night, craving blood, typical vampire stuff."

Ryan's jaw dropped as Kate's laughter escaped from behind her hand.

"Ryan, he's not a vampire and he's doing all right. But he is convinced that Janice Freeman murdered her son, and there is a chance he might be on to something. I want you to dig into the background of the Freeman family. If there's anything hinky, I want to know about it."

"On it," Ryan acknowledged.

Esposito strolled in from the break room, his mouth still busy on the last of his morning doughnut. Kate smiled as he swiped the sugar and cinnamon from his lips. "Espo, I need you to check with ballistics about the bullet that killed Jonas Westfall."

"Already on it. I also have a call in to the Jersey State Troopers about the woman that's in Jonas Westfall's papers."

Stowing her bag and hanging her jacket on the back of her chair, Beckett headed to the break room for her second jolt of caffeine. She ran her fingers lightly over the metal of Castle's Espresso machine, which had become as much a fixture in homicide as the murder board. By the time she finished struggling to produce what Castle crafted with such ease, Esposito was calling from the doorway. "Beckett, the woman in the drawing, she was shot with a nine millimeter, like Jonas. I asked the Jersey boys to send the ballistics for comparison."

* * *

Beckett hunched over her desk paging through Morgan Lockerby's psych file. He'd had a normal childhood growing up and attending school just south of Harlem. His parents had not been wealthy, nor had they been impoverished. He'd been a good enough student in a public high school to avail himself of City College. That had led to a mid-level job in the financial district. The onset of his illness had been sudden and devastating, with no prior reports from family, friends, or his employer, of odd behavior. Found homeless and wandering by police, he had been evaluated at Bellevue before being committed to a state institution. Since his escape several years before, he had disappeared into the sanguinarian culture until his arrest for Matthew Freeman's murder. "Poor man," she murmured, a shudder running through her at the thought of Castle meeting a similar fate. It wouldn't happen, not on her watch.

Ryan approached, file in hand. "Beckett, hinky you want, hinky you've got. Alan Freeman was not always Alan Freeman. His original name was Alan McGinty. When he married Janice Freeman he took her name."

"That's unusual, but not incriminating," Beckett offered.

"Oh, but there's more," Ryan continued. "Alan McGinty was married before, to Elizabeth McGinty, neé Elizabeth Dryden. They had a son, Matthew McGinty. She disappeared when Matthew was two. Janice Freeman was his nanny." He held up a photograph. "This is Elizabeth McGinty. Look familiar?"

"That's the woman in Matthew's drawings. Hey Espo, I need to see something in Jonas Westfall's papers and..." Beckett opened a portfolio of Matthews drawings Ryan had obtained from the design school he'd attended. She searched for a photograph in the file Esposito handed her and compared it to a drawing in the portfolio. "Look, the same tree is in both pictures."

"Matthew could have drawn that from Jonas' file, Esposito suggested.

Beckett turned the drawing over, indicating the date. "This was drawn four years ago. Matthew hadn't even met Jonas. He had to have witnessed the murder. Wait a minute. Elizabeth Dryden? That was the name on the marker Castle showed me in the cemetery near near Matthew's body. The woman Matthew had been drawing from his dreams was his real mother and as a two year old, he saw her killed. The trauma etched her memory into his mind, even if he didn't know who she was. All this time the Freemans had been lying to him. Jonas helped him figure it out. Matthew must have confronted his family with the truth, and he and Jonas died for it."

"Yeah, but how are you going to prove it?" Ryan asked.

Esposito, checked the screen of his phone as it beeped with a text. "I think we've had some help with that. The bullet from New Jersey and the bullet from Jonas Westfall's body, they match."

"Maybe we'll catch a break and the gun will still be at the Freeman's home," Beckett hoped. "I'll get a warrant."

* * *

The sun had just fallen below the horizon when Beckett gazed down at the Castle sized lump under her Nona's lovingly wrought patchwork. She pulled back the fabric that covered the face, smiling in sleep, and lightly brushed his neck with her fingertips. "Rise and shine, Castle."

As his lashes lifted, the smile remained. "Kate, hi."

"Move it Castle, You're supposed to be at the hospital in forty-five minutes."

Castle grabbed her hand as she turned to leave the room. "Did you solve the case? Was it Janice Freeman?"

"You were right, Castle. She was the spotted blond. I'll tell you the details later. Just get ready to go."

Castle released her hand, sitting up as she left. A thought hit him like a punch to the gut. What if he'd drooled in his sleep? It didn't happen often, usually only if he was drunk. But what if he did and Kate slept on the pillow? He carefully examined the pillowcase and breathed a sigh of relief. It was bone dry with no telltale blotches. Castle stripped for a quick shower. He ran a hand over his face. There should have been a stubble, but there was none. His beard wasn't growing. He wondered if his hair and nails were. Some of the vampires in the movies had pretty impressive claws, but then some of them also sparkled or turned into bats. He was doing neither. An author's imagination had yet to portray his particular brand of bloodsucker. Maybe that would be his next book: _Undead Heat_. He had a reflection, but he seemed almost translucently pale. He needed blood.

* * *

"So her fingerprints were on the gun that killed both Jonas Westfall and Elizabeth McGinty?" Castle asked as the last of a pint of blood flowed into his arm.

"Uh huh," Kate nodded. "Turns out she was in love with Alan Freeman and wanted him all to herself. Alan had no idea Janice had killed his wife. When she suggested lying to Matthew about who his mother was, Alan thought she was protecting his son. She was really protecting herself."

Castle shook his head as the nurse detached the IV and stuck adhesive tape over the cotton she pressed against his arm. "Sad story. It must be devastating to have lost a son and two wives."

"It is sad," Beckett agreed, "but he and Rosie have each other and they're holding on tight. I think they'll make it. Alan said he's going to make sure _Everlasting Blood_ , Matthew's graphic novel, is published as a memorial to both Matthew and Jonas. Some of the profits will go to help Morgan Lockerby as well."

Castle flexed his arm and nodded his thanks to the nurse. "Can we get out of here before all the decent pumpkins are gone?"

"I don't know Castle," Kate replied, pulling out her car keys, "The way you ogled the slutty nurse costume, the pumpkin I picture you carving would be indecent, probably 'R' rated."

"Beckett give me some credit," Castle protested. "If I do indecent, it will definitely rate at least an 'X.'"


	5. Chapter 5

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 5

Castle was on the edge of sensory overload as he pushed the cart through the upscale market. Scents drifted to his nostrils: the sweetness of ripe fruit, the astringency of bitter greens, the foulness of a rotting potato buried somewhere beneath bags of good ones. Beckett followed him to the produce section. Even the types of pumpkins were distinguishable, from the sugary smell of the smaller ones destined for pies, to the blandness of the large fibrous globes perfect for crafting jack-o-lanterns. Castle reached for one of the former and three of the latter, sliding them onto the shelf under the cart. Beckett was attracted by the melons, her hand reaching toward a netted sphere at the edge of the pile. Castle touched her arm. "Not that one, it's not ready yet." He picked up one further back. "This one."

"How can you tell?" Beckett puzzled.

Grasping a melon in each of his large hands, he held each of them under her nose in turn, inviting her to sniff the fragrance. "Smell the difference?"

Beckett nodded. "But how could you tell from a distance?"

"I told you, my senses are sharper. Besides," he added, staring down at her well filled top, "I'm quite an aficionado of melons."

Beckett grabbed the ripe fruit from his hand and placed it in the cart. "Keep your mind on groceries, Castle."

"I was," he replied feigning innocence. Castle pushed the cart through the aisles with little further comment except to inquire about Kate's preference in brands. Though the food held little appeal for him, he selected the makings for meals he'd seen her enjoy. As they approached the back of the store, Castle was drawn to the meat counter. The in-house butcher was slicing a large loin into thick steaks. Castle stood, riveted by the sight and smell of the pooling blood."

"You want to grill steaks tonight? Beckett asked.

Castle struggled to pull his eyes from the fresh meat. "We can grill yours. Those look perfect to me the way they are."

The butcher interrupted his task, wrapped up two of the steaks and handed them to Castle, who inhaled deeply before putting them in the cart. Beckett swallowed the disquiet in her throat. At least Castle wanted to eat something. Beckett added a bottle of wine to their purchases before they checked out. "I'm going to need this," she muttered.

* * *

"It's no different than eating tartare," Beckett tried to assure herself as she downed Cabernet Sauvignon and averted her eyes from Castle's blood-soaked meal.

Beckett's discomfort was not lost on Castle. "Kate, if this bothers you I can put it away and finish it after you're asleep."

Beckett squared her shoulders. It was ridiculous to be upset by a raw steak when she dealt daily with dead bodies. "Castle, it's not a problem. But it has been a long day. I'm just going to finish my wine and go to bed."

Beckett nestled between the sheets. She'd considered changing them, but the co-mingling of Castle's scent with her own was both comforting and arousing. Were there vampire pheromones? She quickly dismissed the thought. Castle wasn't a vampire. He was just a sick man, a sick, very sexy man who was right in the next room. She forced her eyes shut. The case, Castle's illness, had been draining. She'd think straighter after a night's sleep.

Castle lined his pumpkins up on the table. Back in his loft he had a wide assortment of tools to coax whatever shapes he desired from the bright orange flesh. Kate had sharp knives in her kitchen, but he searched drawers and cabinets for other implements. A stubbornly self sufficient woman like Beckett was bound to have a tool box somewhere. He shifted uncomfortably as he imagined just how adept she might be at handling tools. The bottom of a storage closet yielded a metal box with everything Castle needed, including a small electric multi-tool with a variety of attachments. The battery operated motor was fairly quiet, and Castle believed he could complete his creations without waking Kate.

* * *

Beckett padded into the kitchen before sunrise, drawn by the smell of coffee and spice. Protecting his hands with a towel, Castle pulled a pan from the oven. "Pumpkin pie Castle? For breakfast?"

Castle shook his head. "Of course not. It's for later. Why do you think I bought whipped cream?"

Kate suppressed the thoughts that danced through her brain and heated other regions.

Castle indicated a napkin covered plate on the table. "I made you pumpkin muffins for breakfast."

Beckett uncovered a dozen muffins. "Castle I can't eat all of those. Maybe one or two."

"I was thinking you could bring the rest to Ryan and Esposito. It may make them feel better about seeing my masterpieces at the party tonight." Castle indicated the carved pumpkins sitting on the counter. Two were very clearly maniacal versions the two detectives.

Beckett regarded the third pumpkin. "Is that Captain Montgomery? Do I have to bribe him with muffins too?"

"Only if there are any leftover after Esposito gets a crack at them. I thought that one would stay here. Every kitchen should have a pumpkin on Halloween. Yours might as well get the one with the highest rank."

"Good thinking," Beckett agreed, "and he can keep an eye on you while I'm gone. I have to finish up all the paperwork on Matthew Freeman and Jonas Westfall today."

Castle wrinkled his nose. "Ugh. Paperwork. My cue to go off to dreamland. When do you think you'll be back?"

"Don't worry Castle. I'll be here in plenty of time to get ready for your party."

"What if another body drops?" Castle fretted.

Kate bit appreciatively into a muffin. "Then Karpowski can catch it. Just go to sleep. I'll see you later."

With Montgomery's blessing, Beckett left the precinct early, stopping to pick up a costume she'd reserved. Castle was still sleeping as she drew it tightly over her body. Castle opened his eyes to a vision in crimson. "May I just say, wow! Electra. I like that you went for the comic book version instead of the one in the movie. Sexy and deadly. It suits you."

"The sun's going down. We should get to the loft so you can get into what suits you. Martha didn't pack your cape."

Castle gazed at himself in the mirror of his walk-in closet at his loft. He certainly wouldn't need white make-up or phony teeth. He fingered the black satin of his costume. It would be great, but he needed to do something about his hair. He opened a large storage container of cosplay supplies. He could darken his hair, slick it back, and add a widow's peak for a traditional Dracula. It would be retro, but he liked retro for vampires. He'd never been enthusiastic about jumping on board the Twilight express.

The caterers had done their usual superb job. Guests wandered around chomping on eye-of-newt hors d'oeuvres and dry ice created a fog around the punch bowl. Ryan was dressed as a doctor who'd had an unfortunate meeting with a bullet on a soap opera. Esposito was predictably dressed as a soldier, but was far more interested in the curves beneath Lanie's skin-tight cat suit, than in any combat mission. Hiding her red tresses under a twin bun wig, Alexis was the perfect Princess Leia and Martha strolled among the guests in a hat that threatened to tip her over. Castle circulated, greeting new arrivals and engaging in light conversation, but never strayed far from Beckett.

As the pièce de resistance, a waiter brought out a roast disguised as a large severed head. He began to slice it, but a crystal flute slipped from a server's tray and shattered on the hardwood floor, startling him. His knife slipped, producing an up-welling of blood from a deep cut on his thumb.

Even as a staff member rushed over to staunch the flow, Castle froze at the sight and smell of the vital fluid. He could feel Kate's hand on his arm, but couldn't pull his eyes away. "Castle, are you all right?"

"No," Castle choked out through gritted teeth. "Kate, get me the hell out of here!"


	6. Chapter 6

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 6

Beckett pulled her phone out of her boot as if she'd had a call, and caught the eyes of Ryan and Esposito, inclining her head slightly toward the rigid Castle, "Guys, something has come up on a case," she announced loudly enough to be easily overheard. With a detective on either side, she steered Castle into the hall outside the loft, closing the door behind them. "Castle, what happened?" she asked as the tension in his muscles slowly released.

"Oh God, Kate, the blood. That must have been the madness Morgan Lockerby told you about. When I saw it, when I smelled it, I wanted it. It took everything I had not to jump on that waiter and suck it from his hand."

Beckett nervously pushed back her hair."Castle I don't get it. You were okay around all the blood at the hospital and at the market. And you had your transfusion. Why now?"

Castle pursed his lips and shook his head. "I'm not sure. Maybe because the blood at the hospital wasn't fresh and it was sealed in plastic. The blood from the steaks wasn't fresh either. But just now, if you and the boys hadn't been there, I might have..."

"Castle, you didn't," Beckett announced firmly. "You may have wanted to but you didn't and you probably wouldn't have even if we hadn't been there."

Castle closed his eyes and drew a shaky breath. "I wish I was as sure of that as you are."

"Look, that waiter's probably been bandaged up by now."

"I can check," Ryan interjected, reaching for the door knob. Ryan slipped inside for a moment before returning to the group. "Bandaged and they put a plastic glove over it."

Beckett straightened the collar of Castle's cape. "Think you can go back in now?"

Castle drew a deeper breath. "I'll try. But hey, stay close, okay? And guys, thanks."

Castle's mouth turned upward in a smile he didn't feel as he returned to the party. A trace of a metallic tang still hung in the air, but it was no longer compelling. "You okay, Dad?" Alexis asked. "Fine, Pumpkin," he replied. "And speaking of pumpkins, I brought mine. What did you carve for tonight?"

"I didn't," Alexis admitted. "I mean we always did it together and this year I just didn't feel like it. When are you coming home?"

Castle's stomach clenched as he cupped her cheek. "I don't know sweetheart, but I'm working on it."

* * *

It was two A.M. when Beckett and Castle made it back to her apartment. Castle pulled off his cape throwing it over the back of a chair. "Alexis wants me to go home and I don't dare. Kate, I'm getting worse. The transfusions were supposed to be a holding action but they're not even that. I asked Lanie and she hasn't received any useful information from the CDC or anyone else. I need to track down this thing - disease - whatever it is. I need to find out where it came from and if there's anything that can be done about it. Can you get me in to see Lockerby? Maybe he remembers who bit him."

Beckett had her doubts. If the CDC didn't have a clue, she didn't know how Castle could find one. But he was Castle, he'd surprised her before. And she couldn't bear to dampen the small glint of hope remaining in his eyes. "I don't know Castle, but I'll see what I can do."

Castle gazed after Kate as she retired to her room. The hours until sunrise would not pass quickly.

* * *

Morgan Lockerby regarded Castle with sympathetic eyes. "I'm sorry, I never wanted to hurt anyone. The blood madness..."

Castle could feel the supportive touch of Kate's hand on his arm as he gazed back at the almost unrecognizable face. The wild hair had been shorn and the matted beard shaved. He was pitifully thin and still bore marks where the sun had burned his face "He must have had the beard when he was infected, or it grew very slowly," Castle thought, feeling his own still smooth jawline. He addressed the figure, desperately hoping he wasn't looking at his own future. "I understand. I've felt it. Tell me how you became what you - what we - are. Do you remember how it happened?"

Lockerby nodded slowly. "Sometimes it's the only thing I do remember. It was fall, like it is now. All the front office people had left for the day but I was working late on a new tracking program and my allergies were killing me. I took an antihistamine, but it made me sleepy and dried me out so much my nose was bleeding. I gave up on work and I was walking to the subway and still bleeding a little when this guy came out of the shadows. He jumped on me before I knew what was happening, licked a couple of drops of blood off my face and then he bit me and started sucking the blood out of my neck. I tried to yell but I couldn't get the sound out. I must have fainted, because I woke up in an alley and the sun was just coming up. I could feel it burning me. I didn't know why, but I knew I had to get out of the light. I climbed into a dumpster and buried myself under the trash until it was dark again. By then I couldn't think of anything but needing blood. There were rats in the alley and I drained them. Then I took the subway home. From then on it was just a battle to survive. I joined covens because they allowed me to drink blood. But they kicked me out when they realized I wasn't just playing dress-up. I remember being in the hospital and escaping because I was starving. It's just bits and pieces after that, I remember Vixen's coven, where I met Matthew, until she made me leave too. And then you and your people found me."

"Do you remember anything at all about the man who did this to you?" Castle pressed. "What he looked like? What he was wearing?"

Lockerby closed his eyes, the pain of reliving the moment evidenced by the creases in his pale skin. "He had a thing around his neck. It was in my face when he bit me. It was a gold forty-seven. I'm sorry I don't remember anything else."

"Just one more thing," Castle requested, "your beard, the long hair, did you have it when you were - turned - or did it grow?"

"The corners of Lockerby's mouth twitched upward in memory. "I had it. I was the only one in the office with any kind of growth. They called me the resident weirdo. I guess they never knew how right they were. Good luck, Mr. Castle. You're going to need it."

"So what now, Castle?" Beckett asked as they returned to her car.

Castle sighed. "I make sure I'm not around anyone who's bleeding and I track down a gold forty-seven. It's not much to go on, but it's the only lead I have."


	7. Chapter 7

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 7

Returning to Beckett's apartment, a troubling thought, born of a lifetime spent around women, sprang to Castle's mind.

"What aren't you saying, Castle?" Beckett prodded, sensing an uncommonl hesitation of whatever idea was in his brain, to pour out of his mouth.

"Beckett, um Kate, women you, bleeding, I mean when..."

"Castle are you asking me when I'll have my period?"

Castle shuffled uncomfortably. "I know I wouldn't see it, but Beckett, I can smell blood and I'm afraid, I mean if... especially if you're asleep..."

Beckett couldn't help smiling at the mix of deep concern and acute embarrassment. "Castle I have an implant and one of the side effects is that I don't bleed, at least not that way."

Jealousy rapidly displaced fear. "You have an implant. I didn't know that you were, I mean you haven't mentioned anyone in a while."

Beckett tried unsuccessfully to convince herself that she wasn't glad Castle was jealous. She reached for his hand. "I'm not right now. But those things are good for years and just in case I want to be, I need to know I'm protected. I guess it makes me protected two ways."

Castle rubbed his thumb between Beckett's knuckles. "Well okay then."

Okay," Beckett repeated, dropping Castle's hand. "I think I'll turn in."

"Yeah, well I'm going to research that gold forty-seven. Early breakfast?"

"Early breakfast," Beckett repeated, retreating to her room.

Castle hunched over his laptop in frustration. Forty-seven seemed to be the most commonly used number on the web, there were over seven billion references. Adding gold only cut it down to about six hundred million. He struggled to find keywords that would yield a manageable search. As daylight approached, he discovered that the addition of sanguinarian, vampire, and symbol would bring the references down into the thousands. Stretching, he closed the computer to figure out a meal for Kate that would compensate for the awkwardness of their last conversation.

He mourned the lack of an Espresso machine. Castle made a note to order one. A latte, especially one with a smile in the foam, would have been perfect. He did the best he could, adding a few shavings of chocolate and a dash of salt to the grounds before brewing the coffee. He considered crepes, but couldn't picture Kate with something that delicate. Thick slabs of French toast with a side of the melon she liked, seemed more her style. He cut up the fruit, put smiling wedges on a plate for her, and carefully sprayed the same pan he'd used for pancakes. He was just turning the egg drenched slices when she joined him in the kitchen. "Castle, you keep this up and I'm going to gain ten pounds."

Castle's eyes swept over her slim but well muscled form. "The way you work out I doubt you'll gain ten ounces." He waved a hand over the pan, wafting the essences of vanilla and cinnamon in her direction. "But if you don't like my cooking, I understand. I can always wrap it up for the boys."

Beckett bumped his hip with hers. "I never said that. The boys can find their own breakfast. I can always go a few extra rounds with the heavy bag."

"I wouldn't mind punching something myself right now," Castle confessed.

"Didn't find anything in your research?"

Castle shook his head. "Found way too much. It could take days, maybe more, to slog through it all."

"Other than getting pumped full of the red stuff, do you have something else you need to do?" Beckett asked.

"I do owe Gina a chapter, but I'm almost done with it. Talk about bloodsuckers. Sometimes I wonder if someone bit her. I'll make it work."

"I know you will Castle. You always seem to come up with something, no matter how far out of the box. If I hear anything from Lanie today, you want me to call you right away or wait until sunset?"

Castle shrugged. "I don't even know if I'll hear a phone once I've fallen asleep for the day, but please call. I'll put my cell under my - your - pillow."

* * *

Castle's special Beckett ring tone easily penetrated his consciousness, though he stayed under cover while he answered it. "Castle, I'm in the morgue with Lanie. You should talk to her."

"Hey, Writer Boy, I heard back from Columbia. You spit up a virus they've never seen before, but they said it's a little like one found in bats. They think it might have mutated at one point and jumped to humans."

"Well that could account for some of the mythology," Castle mused. "Anything else?"

"There's a report. I can email it to you, but I'll hit the high points. The virus can't live outside the body. It passes directly from saliva to blood. If it doesn't find it's way into a red blood cell immediately, it dies. That may account for the adaptation to make your teeth grow. The virus is protecting itself. So spitting on someone, even drooling on someone wouldn't infect them."

"How about a kiss?" Castle blurted out.

"No sexual transmission of any kind Castle. If there was, we probably would have seen major outbreaks, like HIV. Unless you bite someone, they're safe. That's the good news. The bad news is they have no idea how to fight it. But they want to test the effects of anti-virals on you, if you're game."

"Of course I'm game!" Castle exclaimed.

"Um hmm. Thought you would be. Under the circumstances, the director of the lab there is willing to see you tonight. I'll give Beckett the details."

Castle drew a hopeful breath. "Thank you Lanie, if there's ever anything I can do for you..."

"I take cash, spa certificates, and jewelry, Castle," she quipped, "but we can talk about it when I can see you in the daylight."

* * *

With Beckett at his side, Castle nervously mounted the steps to Doctor Morris' office. Morris was of average height and build with no distinguishing features except for a slightly satanic beard, overlong hair, and startling green eyes. His voice was tinged with the slightest hint of an accent Castle couldn't place. He waved Castle and Beckett to chairs in front of his desk. "I must say, Mr. Castle, I'm fascinated. A virus transmitted by a human bite, producing symptoms of vampirism; we'll be writing papers about this one for some time to come."

Beckett stared at him through narrowed eyes. "Doctor, let's just hope you can write a paper about how to cure it."

Morris cleared his throat. "Of course." He passed a computer printout and several medications across the desk. I've prepared a protocol for Mr. Castle to follow." He looked at Castle. "There's a checklist, so you can be sure you're doing it correctly. The hospital can draw your blood before your transfusions and send it to me for analysis so we can track your progress. One request, can I see your teeth?"

Castle pulled back his lips in a grimace, allowing Morris a full view.

"A marvelous manipulation of a host," Morris commented, standing to indicate the end of the meeting and rocking back and forth on the ball of his feet. He ignored Castle's outstretched hand. "Dr. Parish gave me your contact information. I'll be in touch."

"Thank you, Doctor," Castle and Becket responded in concert, before leaving the office.

"Strange man," Beckett commented as they left the building.

"He is," Castle agreed, "but we left normal days ago. Right now, strange may be just what I need."


	8. Chapter 8

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 8

Beckett was jerked awake by the sounds of sickness. She found Castle on his knees on the hard tile floor of the bathroom, resting his head against the coolness of the porcelain bowl. At a loss for what else to do, she rubbed her hand comfortingly between his shoulder blades. "Castle, what happened?"

"Side effects of the good doctor's treatment. This was on the list, along with almost everything else except earthquakes and tidal waves. You know, you get so used to hearing the rendition of all possible horrors on TV, you ignore them."

Beckett gently brushed the hair from his face with her fingertips. "I think that's the point, Castle. Are you all right now?"

"I don't know. When you don't actually have anything to puke, it's hard to tell. But if my legs will work, I think I can make it back to my laptop."

Beckett extended a hand to help him up. "How's the research going?"

Castle shook his head slowly. "It's unbelievable how many times someone's put a forty-seven on gold jewelry, and even in connection to vampires, how meaningless it usually is. Next time I buy a necklace - platinum. But hey, I'm sorry I woke you. You don't need to be up for hours yet."

"Castle, It's fine. We're in this together, roomie."

"Still," Castle insisted, "you should go back to bed. I think I'll finish the chapter for Gina and send it off. I had four emails from her today. Nikki and Rook are dealing with a typewriter. That's something about which I actually have an intimate understanding. I'll see you when you wake up."

"Okay Castle," Beckett agreed hesitantly, "but if you need me, I'm here."

Even in his queasiness, Castle was struck by how many ways he needed her, but it wasn't the time. He made his way back to his keyboard.

* * *

Castle pushed "send." At least he'd accomplished something, but his energy was low. "No fancy stuff this morning, Kate," he muttered to himself. He pulled out a small beat up frying pan to scramble her eggs and put slices of bacon between paper towels in the microwave.

After Castle's night, had it not been for the bacon's siren call creeping under the door of her room, Beckett would have been surprised to find breakfast of any kind waiting for her. She was supposed to be taking care of him. She joined him in the kitchen. "How are you doing, Castle?"

"Tired," he admitted, "but I've satisfied Black Pawn for now. You could distract me from my suffering. Do you and the boys have a new dead body?"

"It's been pretty quiet, so Montgomery has us looking into cold cases. I found one that you might find very interesting."

Curiosity flashed in Castle's eyes. "Interesting how?"

"The victim was a John Doe; supposedly it was a random mugging. He bled out from a stab wound. But the M.E. noted that the loss of blood was extreme, even for a stabbing. There were two other wounds on the neck and it was in the financial district."

The fatigue fell away from Castle like a veil. "When did it happen?".

"That's the really interesting part. Within a couple of weeks of when Morgan Lockerby claims he was attacked."

Castle leaned across the table in excitement. "Beckett, do you think it could have been the same attacker? Maybe there were more attacks that went unconnected. There might have been reports of assaults."

"That occurred to me too, Castle. Unless a new body drops, the boys and I will be going through the old records. I may have something for you tonight."

Castle impulsively kissed her cheek. "Thank you!"

Beckett unconsciously fingered the spot his lips had touched. "It is our job to track down killers, Castle, even bloodsucking ones." Beckett took a last sip of coffee and pushed away from the table. "Feel better, okay? I'll see you tonight."

Dr. Morris' drug regimen did not spare Castle daytime doses. Castle set alarms on his phone for the times his checklist specified. He was grateful that heavy rains darkened the city skies, making it unlikely that any stray rays of light would find him. His stomach was still rebelling against the medication, but he could make it to the bathroom without fear of scorch marks.

When Beckett returned, Castle was still drained and shaky, but anxious to hear any news from her search. She laid out several copies of reports across the table. "These were assaults reported to 911. They're all within a few blocks of each other. When the unis got there, they couldn't find the victims, so nothing was ever done about them. The last one was just a month ago."

Castle looked at the time stamps. "These all would have been pretty close to sunrise. The victims probably hid somewhere to get out of the light, like Lockerby did."

"That's what I thought too," Beckett agreed, moving closer. "And their attacker must have had a place nearby."

"Or he would have been caught by the sun too," Castle continued, closing the gap between them, until their faces were inches apart. "Beckett, somewhere in this area, there has to be a lair." Castle's eyes met Beckett's, holding her gaze. He expected her to step back, to break the spell, but she stood fast. His lips descended on hers.

New energy coursed through Castle, as he felt the warmth of Kate's body pressing against his own, her hand cupping the back of his neck. He plunged his fingers into her hair, damp from the rain. "Kate," he whispered huskily, "if you don't want this, tell me now."

Kate pulled him back to her lips in answer. Clasping his hand in silence, she led him to the bedroom. Kate traced the ruggedness of his face with her fingertips, finally caressing his lips, still moist from their meeting.

Castle couldn't be sure if the roar in his ears was thunder from the storm or a release of the passion so long held at bay. Kate's eyes stared up at him in aroused expectancy. She melted to his touch, her muscles limp against the support of his hands. He lowered her to the bed, bringing his mouth to her insistent lips as he covered her body with his own. The crack of lightning went unheard in the maelstrom of their private storm.

A wide awake Castle cradled a sleeping Kate Beckett, smiling in her dreams. Damn pills! There would be an alarm soon. He rose as carefully as he could to disable it before it disturbed her. He dutifully downed the prescribed tablet and marked the appropriate spot on his list. He ran a hand over his jawline; no stubble. There was no sign the treatment was doing anything other than making him sick, but it hadn't been long, even if the wait seemed endless. There were other things to concentrate on now: new search criteria. He opened his laptop. If he could cross reference the information he'd already gathered with the area of the attacks, he might be able to find the attacker, and perhaps even further clues to his own condition. As morning approached, Castle smiled in triumph at his screen. That had to be it. It was a small private firm, Sânge, established by refugees from Eastern Europe. It had been founded in 1947.


	9. Chapter 9

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 9

Castle heard Kate beginning to stir in the bedroom. He poured a mug of the coffee he'd started brewing twenty minutes before and sat on the edge of the bed as she opened her eyes. "Good morning," he said, extending the steaming cup.

Kate sat up, covered by a sheet, and took it, unsure of what to do next. Theory building with Castle had always felt like foreplay, but the culmination of over a year's worth had taken her by surprise. There had been no chance to sort through her feelings.

Castle sensed her unease. "Kate, are you sorry we...?

The words exploded from her mouth. "Oh no, Castle. No! I just need time to process what happened, to figure out where to go from here."

Castle nodded slowly. "I understand, but you could start with going to the kitchen. I'll be waiting when you're ready." Castle turned to leave, but turned back with a crooked smile. "Pancakes or omelet?"

Kate couldn't help returning the smile. "Definitely pancakes."

* * *

Castle warmed a small ceramic pitcher of syrup in the microwave and put it in front of Kate, whose eyes were carefully riveted on her breakfast. "I found the lair and the forty-seven."

It took Kate a moment to figure out what he was talking about. "You mean the lair of the attacker in the financial district?"

Castle nodded, walking away to get his laptop. Sitting opposite her, he opened it, brought up his information on Sânge and turned the screen so she could see it.

"Sânge, is that blood?"

"In Romanian," Castle confirmed. "Founded in 1947, and it's at the epicenter of the attacks. Kate, it all fits."

"Castle, you may very well be right. But none of this is enough to get a warrant."

"You don't need a warrant for a stake out, do you?" Castle persisted. "You could put surveillance on the place, see what happens"

"Castle, we don't have the resources for that," Beckett protested. "It could be weeks or months before anything happens - if anything happens."

Castle slammed his palm on the table. "Fine! If anything happens, it will happen at night. I'll watch the place myself."

Kate reached for his hand. "Castle, that could be dangerous. You don't even have a gun."

"Whoever it is hasn't used one either. If anything happens, I can call you. I'm already infected. What else could happen?"

"You could get stabbed to death is what could happen," Kate replied angrily, tears springing to her eyes. "We just... I don't want to lose you."

"And how many others will become infected or die? I can't live with that Kate, and I don't think you can either. Look, I'm pretty good at handling myself in a clutch. You know that. What about this? I'll carry pepper spray. That's legal, and with the boost in senses that comes from the infection, probably pretty deadly. And you can teach me how to fight an attacker wielding a knife. I have to do this Kate. These attacks can't go on."

Kate swiped at her eyes. "Alright Castle. I know I can't stop you, so I'll help you. We do our first class tonight, right after your transfusion. But you don't go out until I say you're ready. Deal?"

Castle cupped her chin and gently touched his lips to hers. "Deal."

* * *

Castle and Beckett faced each other across the mat in the gym at the Twelfth. Castle was sure Kate would cut him no slack. This was going to hurt. He was grateful that his body seemed to have adjusted to Morris' regimen. There had been no change in the symptoms of his infection, but the nausea was gone and with a fresh infusion of blood in his veins, he felt ready to take on whatever Kate meted out. She had already spent several nights instructing him in techniques for disarming or evading an attacker. Now she came at him with the prop knife. He tried to apply what's he'd learned, but she continually turned his weight and size against him. He picked himself up from the mat for the sixth time. "Castle, what have you learned?"

"That even with a mat, getting slammed by Kate Beckett hurts like hell," Castle responded. "Or that maybe I'd better try another tack." Castle suddenly pulled a spray bottle of water that was doubling for pepper out of his pocket, aimed it in her face, and ran.

Beckett laughed, wiped her face on a towel and found Castle sitting on a bench in the locker room. She slid in next to him. "So what was the lesson, Castle?"

"That when faced with a superior opponent do whatever the hell you can to get the hell out of there?"

"'A' plus, Castle. I think you might even survive your stakeout."

* * *

As she and Castle returned to the apartment, Kate could feel her clothes clinging to her still sweaty body. "Ugh, I need a shower."

"That makes two of us. Want to save water and do it together?" Castle proposed.

"Sounds environmentally conscious," Kate agreed, "but it'll be a tight fit."

Castle pulled her tightly against his body. "I've always been a fan of tight fits."

Rare in an old building, Kate's water pressure was good. Hot water sluiced over their bodies as they scrubbed away the remnants of their sparring session. Quickly bluing bruises stood out starkly against the whiteness of Castle's skin. Kate gently ran her fingers over the marks. "I'm sorry Castle, I shouldn't have slammed you that hard."

Castle grabbed her hand, kissing warm droplets from her fingertips. "No apologies necessary, Kate. You were doing what you needed to do to get your point across."

Kate gazed downward. "Speaking of getting a point across..."

"I suppose I could make some penetrating comments," Castle returned.

"Or," Kate suggested, "you could shut up and kiss me."

Castle had more in mind than a kiss and Kate shared his thoughts. The shower curtain vibrated as they slipped against the soap slicked porcelain of the tub. Castle pulled back. "You didn't kill me in the gym, but I might meet my doom here. I'll apply my newfound wisdom. Drier, less dangerous venue?"

The friction of nubby towels intensified their need as they quickly banished the moisture from each others' heated skins. They fell on the bed in a desperate tangle of arms and legs. "If this is what happens when we spar," Castle panted, "we can go back to the mats any time. I'll be up for anything."

Kate rolled, pinning him against the bed covers. "Castle, you have no idea what you're in for."

"Detective Beckett, I can't wait to find out."


	10. Chapter 10

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 10

Castle sat behind the wheel of his Mercedes. In the financial district no one would give the upscale car a second look. If the stakeout went on for very long, he might try a few rentals. The same car every night would eventually draw notice. Beckett fidgeted in the seat beside him. "Kate, if you won't go home, you really should try to get some sleep, you have to work in the morning. The seat does recline. I'll wake you if I see anything."

"Castle, it's your first night out. I just want to make sure everything goes all right. I'm not tired."

"Okay," Castle conceded grudgingly, "but get some rest if you need it. You don't have to worry. After all, I was trained by the best."

"I'll give you that, Castle," Kate laughed.

The night was quiet except for the occasional scuttling of a rat. Despite her protestations, Beckett dozed, jerking awake every so often to check on Castle. He found himself gazing too often at her, rather than at the back door of Sânge. As strong as his desire to be with her was, he didn't need the distraction. Finding whoever was responsible for his plague was too important, especially if the culprit was a killer as well. He checked the time on the glowing dial of his watch: five A.M. The sun would be up in ninety minutes. If something was going to happen, it would have to happen soon. The drive back to Beckett's apartment was only nine minutes, but if he got stuck behind a garbage truck or there was an accident, he could be caught out. He supposed he could have Kate drive. Worst come to worst, he could hop in the trunk. But he didn't want to wake her. He needed to be able to do this on his own. At six A.M. he regretfully decided the night had been a bust and drove back to sanctuary.

* * *

Shortly after sunset Castle received a text from Dr. Morris. The stakeout hadn't been the only thing that was a bust. The virus in Castle's blood showed no signs of diminishing. Castle felt the ever present smoothness of his jaw. He was disappointed but not surprised. Morris proposed trying a new protocol and requested that Castle drop by his office. Castle was hesitant to give up time that he might have spent on his stake-out. He wasn't eager to have his nights punctuated by more rounds of retching either, but Morris was still his best chance at getting his life back. He acknowledged the meeting.

Beckett had not yet returned from the Twelfth, having started her shift mercifully late. Castle drove up to Columbia by himself. Morris was apologetic that the first round of treatment had not gone better and handed Castle a new set of bottles with an accompanying sheaf of instructions. "I know it's difficult for you, but try to take the morning doses with at least some form of food, whatever you can manage. It should help you to tolerate the regimen better."

Castle thought of the raw steak he'd eaten before Halloween. As off-putting as it had obviously been to Kate, raw meat had been the only thing he'd been able to consume since Lockerby bit him. If he timed it right, he could have some before she woke up. The picture in his minds eye of bloody meat was disturbingly appetizing. He made a stop at the market and stowed his purchase in the back of Kate's refrigerator before taking up his post at Sânge.

In Kate's absence, Castle had prepared to fill his time in the car. Using voice recognition software, he dictated Nikki Heat's adventures into his laptop. The software was far from perfect and he knew he'd have to correct what were sometimes mind-blowing errors later, but editing was easier than writing and getting the work done would have the added advantage of keeping Gina off his back. There was only one woman he wanted front, back, or anywhere in-between, and that was Kate. Most of the night passed without incident, but quickly.

The opening of the door at three-thirty A.M. was startling, immediately interrupting Castle's flow of gritty dialogue. He pulled off his headset and watched as a figure crept into the darkness. Not wanting to alert his quarry by starting the motor of the car, Castle decided to follow on foot. Clutching his pepper spray, he stayed as far back as he could while still keeping the figure in sight.

The trail led to a brokerage house where the traders were arriving for the opening of the Asian stock markets. Castle's target hid in the shadows while the traders made their way inside, until moving on a lone late arrival, a limping white haired man. Castle began to run as the victim was knocked to the ground. Arriving just before teeth could meet neck, he pulled the attacker off. Castle's opponent flew at him enraged. Castle sprayed him, but was close enough to inhale the vapors himself. Choking, Castle fought to subdue the still struggling man, using the techniques Beckett had drilled into him to get the attacker down on the ground and restrained with a plastic tie. Still coughing, Castle sat on the would be bloodsucker and pulled out his phone to call Kate.

Marked units beat Kate to the scene, despite her full employment of siren and gumball. She jumped out of her unit to join Castle, who was giving a uni his account. "You all right Babe?"

Castle smiled in surprise at the endearment, the first one he'd ever heard leave her mouth. "Couldn't be better," he replied, a rasp edging his words. He pointed at his prisoner, now in the back of a squad car. "Can't wait to hear what that one has to say."

Other than stating he was allergic to sunlight and demanding a lawyer, Castle's collar had nothing to say at all. "He needs blood," Castle told Kate, watching the increasingly agitated man through the mesh of the windowless holding cell. "Give him time, when he's desperate enough, he'll talk."

"And you need to get undercover before the sun comes up," Beckett reminded him. "I'll make sure the paperwork moves slowly. He'll be safe in there. If he's anything like you, he'll probably sleep and have his lawyer arrive tonight. Maybe you can sit in on the interrogation."

Castle drew an unsteady breath. "I hope I'm not much like him. The man he attacked was disabled and wasn't even bleeding. And you could use some rest too. I woke you hours before you should have been up."

"I'll sack out on Captain Montgomery's couch. And I'll call you if anything happens."

"All right," Castle agreed, looking around before quickly squeezing Beckett's hand. "See you later."

"See you later," Beckett repeated.

Castle returned to Kate's apartment and pulled a piece of raw steak out of the refrigerator to eat before taking his new pills. "At least," he thought grimly, savoring the fresh blood too much for his own peace of mind, "Kate isn't here to watch this."


	11. Chapter 11

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 11

A full stomach had reduced the side effects of Castle's new medications to mild nausea. He was able, if fitfully, to sleep through the daylight hours. Kate called just as the sun descended below the horizon. Boian Sala, the lawyer for Castle's collar, now identified as Cezar Albu, was due to arrive shortly and Kate would be beginning her questioning. Castle arrived at the Twelfth just as Albu was ushered into the box by two unis. Restless, Albu chafed at the cuffs and chains restraining him. "Babe, you need to stay in observation," Kate cautioned Castle as they gazed at Albu through the two-way mirror. "There's something I may have to do and you shouldn't be in the room. You may even need to look away. Just hang in there."

Beckett entered interrogation, taking a seat opposite Albu. "My client is obviously disturbed," Sala began. "He should have been in a psychiatric facility, not a cell."

"He was certainly in touch with reality enough to ask for a lawyer," Beckett responded, "but he has been referred for evaluation. There are just some things we need to clear up before he's transported. There have been a number of assaults in the area where your client was found, similar to the one he was attempting to commit last night when Mr. Castle stopped him. We need to determine if your client was involved in those as well."

"My client is asserting his right to remain silent," Sala insisted.

Beckett picked up a folder secured with a knotted cord. After making a show of attempting to untie the knot, Beckett pulled out her knife to cut it, nicking her finger in the process. Blood welled from the cut. Albu jerked upward from the table, restrained by his chains. Sala shifted uncomfortably, staring at the red drops as Beckett stuck her finger in her mouth. Albu struggled against his restraints, causing Sala to grab his arm to pull him back to his seat. "You should cover that," Sala advised Beckett. "It's disturbing my client."

"It's only a little cut. Why should it disturb him?" Beckett extended her finger toward Albu, another drop of blood clinging to the tip. "See, it's nothing."

Still held at bay by his chains his chains, Albu made another futile lunge at Beckett. "Blood!"

"Quiet!" Sala hissed.

Albu ignored his counsel. "Needed blood. Always need blood. Need it now."

Beckett squeezed another drop of blood from her fingertip. "Are you admitting to the attacks, Mr. Albu?"

"My client admits nothing," Sala insisted.

"Shut up!" Albu shouted. "Yes. I needed blood. I had no choice. None of us have a choice. Please!"

"Alright," Beckett agreed. "Mr. Sala, I'm going to call an ambulance for your client. You can accompany him if you like."

Beckett carefully covered her cut with a band aid before meeting Castle in observation."You okay Babe?"

"None of us have a choice," Castle repeated. "Kate it's not just him. There are more of them. Will his confession hold up in court?"

"Probably not," Beckett admitted. "Sala will claim Albu was under duress. But it doesn't have to. There's more than enough to convict him of the attack last night and now we have a justification to look into everything about Sânge. If there are others, we'll find them."

"Kate, I want to help, I need to help," Castle insisted.

"You will," Kate agreed. "I'm going home to catch a few hours of sleep, but you can start digging into the records tonight if you want to."

"I want to," Castle responded enthusiastically.

"Then when you're down for the day I'll email you anything the boys and I find." Kate smiled. "You can employ your writer's superpowers as a researcher."

Castle mimed typing on a keyboard. "Just call me Captain Fingers. Ooh, that sounded dirtier than I intended.

Kate stroked his hand. "It sounded good to me. Later?"

"Later," Castle agreed.

Castle bent over the computer at Beckett's desk. Financials on Sânge and Albu would not arrive until morning, but the history of the Albu family was fascinating, dating back centuries. They had maintained extensive estates in Romania, with their holdings shrinking during World War II. In earlier centuries, the locals had lived in fear of the Albus, with reports of unexplained deaths and disappearances. There were stories of strange illnesses taking hold after reported attacks by an Albu, but it was apparent that not all the Albus had been affected. Some had traveled and very successfully conducted business in daylight. There were also reports that some victims of alleged attacks had recovered. Castle wondered if that implied there was a cure or some form of immunity. That would be a question for Dr. Morris, if he was open-minded enough to consider it. Castle sent an email, attaching the information he'd gathered, hoping the Doctor would send a reply sometime during the day. An alarm sounded on Castle's phone. Sunrise was approaching. He headed for Kate's apartment.

The long hours with scant sleep had caught up to Beckett. She lay oblivious as Castle straightened the tangled covers and tucked them around her. She could have at least a few minutes more before he'd rouse her, especially if he made something portable for her breakfast. The occasion called for a breakfast burrito. He cut up peppers and put them in a pan to heat while he diced fresh tomato, beat eggs, and laid out a tortilla.

Kate emerged sleepily from the bedroom. "Smells good in here. I hope I have time to eat it. I need to get back to the precinct. I'm just gonna grab a quick shower."

While he heard the water running, Castle scrambled the eggs with the peppers, dumped the result into the tortilla, topped it with diced tomatoes, rolled it up in a sheath of aluminum foil, and dropped it in a paper bag. He had just filled a traveling mug with coffee when Kate appeared, still slightly damp, but dressed. "I'm sorry Castle, I really need to get out of here."

"My lady does not leave unfed," Castle announced, handing her the mug and the paper bag. "And you'll find all my research on your desk."

Kate stretched upward for a kiss. "You're the best house guest ever, Castle."

"House guest?" Castle questioned.

Kate reached around to grab his well rounded posterior. "Among other things."

"We can explore those later," he suggested returning the kiss. "Now you go be the best, the best detective in the city, and I will see you later."

Castle watched Kate hurry through the door, locking it behind her. Castle cleaned up from making Beckett's meal and yawning, realized that he hadn't consumed what he needed to mitigate the unfortunate effects of his new set of pills. He reached into the depths of the refrigerator for a hunk of ultra-rare breakfast. With torpor rapidly overcoming him, he downed it, together with Morris's contribution. Just managing to finish, he gratefully slipped between Beckett infused sheets.


	12. Chapter 12

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 12

Beckett was frustrated. She had financials for Cesar Albu, but Judge Rowan had refused a warrant on the financials for Sânge. Castle might have been able to convince Markaway, but the poker loving judge was on a golfing vacation in Florida. The monetary web from Cesar radiated outward. With time and effort, the threads could be followed. She had assigned the task to Ryan, who seemed to have a knack for untangling complicated connections. She'd sent the information to Castle as well, but it was still six hours until sundown, so she didn't expect a response. She paged again through the file he'd left on her desk.

Built up over centuries, the Albu family had tentacles everywhere. As far as she could tell, there was no involvement, or at least no obvious involvement, in crime. What they had amassed seemed to be the result of insight, investing in the right place at the right time and pulling out just before a crash. After World War II, with Romania's membership in the Warsaw Pact impinging on the family's entrepreneurial instincts, a number of Albus had relocated to the United States and established multiple businesses, including Sânge. The holdings of the family in Europe had begun expanding rapidly with Romania's membership in the European Union. Castle had affixed a bright red Post It® flag to the mention of one in particular, a network of blood banks. Beckett wondered if there was something similar in the United States. She started a new search to check.

* * *

Morris scanned the materials Castle had sent him, in fascination. A virus that dated back that far must confer some advantage to its host, although he had yet to determine what that advantage might be. The stories of recoveries were even more fascinating. The possibilities were endless, a mutated receptor, a hemoglobin variant, even a naturally occurring anti-viral in the diet. He needed more data. He carefully crafted an email to his worldwide network of colleagues, requesting any information they might have encountered. It wasn't enough. He had to look carefully at the area where the infection had originated and examine the local mythology. More often than not, even the strangest tale had some small grain of truth. That grain could often provide the path to a real world explanation. Morris consulted his schedule. He only had three meetings that day and he could easily move two of them. There was more than enough time to get a firm start on his research. He sent off a terse message to Castle telling him that he would follow up on his information.

* * *

Ryan approached Beckett's desk with confusion written all over his boyish Irish face. "This makes no sense."

Beckett looked up from her screen. "What makes no sense?"

"I've been following the trail of Cesar Albu's financials. Beckett, I've found transactions dating back more than sixty years."

"Ryan that's impossible. You've seen him, he couldn't be more than thirty. Could it have been a family member with the same name?"

Ryan shook his head. "See that's what I thought too, but I double checked - triple checked. There are lots of Albus but only one Cesar. It's him. Beckett, could he really be a vampire?"

"Ryan that's ridiculous. Maybe the virus just slows down the appearance of aging somehow. Or maybe he's just naturally that way. Look at Rob Lowe. He's barely changed since Saint Elmo's Fire."

Ryan stroked his jaw. "Yeah, I've always wondered about that. Has anyone ever seen him in the daytime?"

Beckett rolled her eyes. "I'm sure TMZ has managed to get a shot or two. Try Google images. After that keep looking at Cesar Albu.

* * *

Castle rose as the sun sank, immediately running his palm over his face to check for any signs of growth. He was groggy and his skin remained smooth. The nagging nausea didn't help and he was due for a transfusion. He checked his message from Dr. Morris. Castle was grateful for the response but didn't find it particularly encouraging. Showering and dressing did little to perk him up.

Kate had yet to make it home from the precinct. There were no emails from her or the boys. Castle would have liked to wait and ask her what she'd uncovered in person, but he had a rendezvous with an IV and from the way he was feeling, he couldn't afford to put it off. Doubting that in his present condition he could competently weave the Mercedes through Manhattan traffic, he hailed a cab.

Castle's feet found their way to the outpatient clinic almost automatically and he greeted the staff by name as they connected him to his ruby lifeline. "Is this becoming my life," he thought glumly, "knowing the staff at the clinic almost as well as I know the cops at the precinct?" He couldn't let it happen. He wanted to be able to go home, especially if he could bring Kate with him. He wanted to be able to see his daughter without worrying about what time of the month it was. He even missed his mother's unsolicited advice. Perhaps it was the blood, or the strength of his determination, but after the transfusion he felt energized in more ways than one. He really needed to see Kate, but there was more work to do first, and the Health Science Library was open 24/7.

* * *

Kate returned to her apartment just in time to see Castle disappearing into a taxi. It was no surprise. She was aware of his standing appointment at the clinic. But she'd hoped to catch him, so they'd have a chance to discuss the growing mystery of the Albu family. She thought about following him, but she'd skipped lunch and grouchiness was beginning to set in. She'd order pizza for one.

Beckett stared morosely at the contents of the cardboard box and nibbled at the smallest slice. Eating alone had never bothered her before. She'd often enjoyed it, using the food and the solitude to stimulate new theories on cases. But things had changed. Being with Castle had changed everything. When he wasn't there, the apartment was unbearably empty. She wanted desperately to see him cured. But if he was, if he could go back to the sumptuousness of his loft, what then? Would they still be together? How? She pushed the thought from her mind. The late Autumn sun set early and rose late. Castle would be back soon and there would be many hours of darkness she wouldn't have to waste sleeping. She could even grab a little nap while she waited for him to return.

It was midnight when Castle let himself in to the apartment. Kate was the first thing he saw. She looked like a little girl, curled up on the couch, clutching a throw pillow as if it was a toddler's "bankie." The lingering aroma of oregano melded with her ever present scent of cherries and vanilla. The combination shouldn't have worked, but somehow, from Kate, it was both endearing and arousing. As Castle picked her up and carried her to the bedroom, she stirred, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Castle."

"Shh, you can go back to sleep, I was just taking you to bed."

Kate's eyes opened. "You can take me to bed, but there are better things to do than sleep."

Castle laid her on the bed and gently brushed the hair from her face. "Tell me what you have in mind."

Kate reached up to pull him down with her. "I think I'll have to show you."


	13. Chapter 13

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 13

Castle didn't want to move. Kate had taken him to new places in incredibly sexy ways. Even as she now slept contentedly in his arms, his senses were tingling in the afterglow. But this was her time to rest, not his. He released her as gently as he could and quietly made his way from the bedroom. Kate had managed to tell him some of what she'd found, during the brief times when they were recovering their senses. The Albus were whole or part owners in a number of blood banks. It begged the question: why would Cesar Albu take blood from living victims when he could easily get it without hurting a soul? Castle shuddered at the thought that he might someday try to follow suit.

Then there was the age conundrum. Did the virus slow aging? Was that why his hair and nails weren't growing? It was a thought both intriguing and terrifying. Castle had spent his time at the library that night looking into diseases that prevented hair growth. The vast majority had involved a lack of sex hormones. If the last couple of hours were any indication, that wasn't his problem. He'd scanned papers on radiation poisoning and toxic chemicals as well. But the effects didn't jibe with what he was experiencing. In those cases the roots were destroyed and hair fell out. The celebrated Castle strands were as lush and perfect as ever. He had found one paper that might have been a match, with a lack of growth attributed to an unidentified anemia. But the paper was old, the details sparse, and there was no mention of a cure. A cross reference with a lack of aging would be a new path to explore. Castle flipped open his laptop.

As daylight approached, Castle was surprised to receive a text from Morris. "Have promising information. Please meet me at my office seven P.M. Tonight." Castle immediately sent his acceptance, hoping the meeting would yield more than another set of pills. There was just enough time to deal with the ones he had, before putting on the coffee and starting breakfast for Kate.

Castle felt Kate's arms wrap around him and her head rest against his shoulder blade as he stood at the stove. He gave the eggs a final scramble before taking the pan off the burner, and turned around to greet her with a kiss. "Sleep well?'

Kate grabbed a piece of bacon and crunched it eagerly. "Um, what were you doing?"

"The usual, typing my fingers to the bone poring through ancient and dusty lore."

"Find anything?"

"Maybe. I have a meeting with Morris tonight. I'm hoping we can compare notes."

"Unless there's a new body, I shouldn't be on shift. Want some company?"

Castle cupped her cheek. "If it's you, always."

* * *

Morris was bouncing on the balls of his feet, his eyes flashing with excitement, as he welcomed Castle and Kate into his office. "It appears there is a rich history to Mr. Castle's virus," he declared, even before they took their seats. "I believe that we're all aware of the mythology of vampires, mostly springing from Vlad the Impaler and a horde of paranormal literature, but I've discovered generations of more believable stories that spring from the area where I believe your virus originated. The disease seems to have advanced and retreated in waves, somewhat similar to the behavior of the Ebola virus. And as with Ebola, there have always been some survivors. That's where the similarity ends. Those who recovered from symptoms similar to Mr. Castle's, had a companion disease, what appears from the symptoms, to have been a parasite that infected the red blood cells, preventing the virus from replicating itself. Those victims suffered a period of severe illness, but eventually went on to pursue productive lives with a normal lifespan. If we can find that infecting organism, or reproduce its effect, we may have a cure."

"A normal lifespan," Castle mused, "Doctor there's some evidence people infected with the virus don't age. Is that even possible?"

Morris stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Theoretically it might be. This virus appears to excel at protecting itself by affecting the host, as in the growth of your teeth. There are mechanisms that result in the aging of cells. It is possible the virus might interfere with one or more of those. It is also possible that it might shut down certain processes to conserve energy. The lack of growth in your hair might be an indication of that."

"So a cure might actually shorten Castle's life?" Kate prodded.

"That would be piling presumption upon presumption," Morris pointed out, "but it is possible."

Castle shifted nervously in his chair. "Doctor, is it possible that if someone had the virus long enough, transfusions wouldn't help and they'd attack people to obtain fresh blood?"

"That sounds more like a psychosis than a failure of treatment," Morris offered. "It might be a result of the virus, or something completely unrelated. We are still proceeding on an extremely limited understanding."

"What about the pills?" Castle inquired. "Do I keep taking them?"

"I'll continue to monitor you, but if we see no improvement by the end of a week's course, it's unlikely we will. At that point you could have a drug holiday. I will continue my research. Your case has opened up entirely new avenues of investigation. I'll be in close touch, Mr. Castle," Morris promised. "It's most exciting."

"I'm glad he's excited," Castle groused as he and Kate left the building. "He's not the one who'll ignite if the sun hits him."

Kate squeezed his hand. "Castle, it's progress. Look, the Albus have probably known about this thing for centuries. They may even know about Morris' parasite. We can track them down, one by one, if we have to, and talk to them. Somewhere there's an answer. But Castle, if Cesar Albu really isn't aging, if you stay this way, you could outlive us all. Are you sure you want a cure?"

Castle stopped in his tracks. "Kate, of course I want a cure! To live this way; to not trust myself around my own daughter; to know I could go crazy at the sight of blood; that I could even try to hurt you; that's not a life I want, no matter how long it is."

"Okay Castle," Kate soothed. "If it's out there, I'll help you find it."

Castle impulsively kissed her hair. "So where do we go from here?"

"I found a city upstate, Bellville, where a lot of the Albus settled. They have a kind of enclave. I have lots of vacation coming. I haven't taken any in years. I can take some now. We could locate a safe place to stay and somewhere you can get transfusions up there. We'll knock on every Albu door if we have to. At least some of them probably even keep the same hours you do."

Castle stared at her in wonder. "You'd do that for me?"

Kate reached up, framing his face in her hands. "Castle, I'd be doing it for us."


	14. Chapter 14

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 14

It took Castle much of the night to drive to Bellville. Many of the roads were small and unmarked and he was grateful for the GPS in the Mercedes guiding him through the maze. The small city looked deceptively sleepy, with rustic homes nestled along the shore of a small lake. Despite the pastoral appearance, Castle's research had revealed not only thriving industry but a well equipped hospital. He had secured a reservation at a motel where the accommodations consisted of a cluster of small cabins. With a Black Card guarantee, Castle and Beckett had no problem checking in when they arrived at four A.M.. The clerk was alert and friendly and promptly showed the couple to their assigned lodgings.

"I get the feeling they're used to late night arrivals," Castle commented when he and Kate were alone. He pointed to the windows equipped with both shutters and heavy drapes. "I'm not the only light sensitive guest they've had. We're in the right place, Kate."

Kate stretched sleepily. "Castle, you and the clerk may be wide awake, but I need to catch a few hours. Will you be okay if I curl up for a while?"

"Yeah, in fact I think I'll take the car and look around for a while. I want to see just how much of a night life Bellville has."

Kate pulled a sleep shirt out of her suitcase. "Fine, but come back before you turn into a pumpkin."

Castle pressed a quick kiss to her lips. "Yes, Fairy Good-lover. I shall return with both my glass slippers."

* * *

The breeze from the lake brought a damp chill to the air. Castle slid behind the wheel of the Mercedes, which he'd pre-started with his fob. He turned up the heat and switched on his seat warmer, grateful for the accouterments of a luxury car. Consulting his phone, he determined the area of town he was most likely to find activity and punched it into his navigation system. Bars and restaurants were dark, but an industrial park with several small factories appeared to be in operation, with full parking lots and light spilling from the windows. "So you're not eating or drinking, but you are working," Castle muttered to himself. "That seems disturbingly familiar." Castle read the sign at the head of the road leading to the group of buildings, "Albu Business Center. Figures." Pulling his car into the most out-of-the-way parking spot he could find, he turned off his headlights and waited.

The shift change began at five A.M. Castle pulled a pair of binoculars out of the glove compartment and surveyed the exiting employees. He thought some of them looked a little pale, but it was hard to tell, even in the well lit lot. The arriving workers looked normal, if a little sleepy. They carried coffee and some were still chomping on last minute breakfast sandwiches. "So the bloodsuckers work at night with the normals taking the day shift. Convenient," he remarked to himself. "This whole place is set up for - people like me," he finished with a chilling realization.

Castle had seen all he wanted to for that moment and he knew that even while dozing, Kate would be aware if he didn't return well before sunrise. Kate lay with one long leg thrown over the covers and her hair splayed sexily on the pillow. "Castle?" she asked, her lashes lifting halfway as he came through the door. "What time is it?"

Castle lay down beside her, gathering her to spoon in the crook of his body. "Time for you to go back to sleep."

Kate awoke in the dark with Castle's arms around her. She could see by the dial on his watch that the sun had been up for some time, but was shielded by the shutters and drapes. Not wanting to wake him, she carefully pulled herself free and reached for a small Mag light she'd stowed in the bedside table. Locating her clothes and her toiletries bag, she made her way to the bathroom, where she could turn on a light behind a closed door.

The shower was small. Even if Castle was awake, it could never have accommodated both of them. That was one strike against the place. Another was that she had to run the hot water for five minutes before the temperature rose above lukewarm. The cabin was definitely not designed for a tryst, but it was safe for Castle. That was enough. She could wait for the short interval it would take to get a stream that wouldn't give her goosebumps.

Her stomach was rumbling by the time she was dressed and she realized how much she'd come to depend on her early morning meal from Chef Castle. There had to be a breakfast place around somewhere. No doubt the clerk in reception would know. Castle had left the fob for the car out for her, and eating would give her a place to observe the locals and kill time until the Hall of Records opened and she could start tracking down all the Albus.

* * *

The records clerk was more bored than helpful, but cooperated when Beckett flashed her badge. Kate quickly found herself wishing she had Castle's speed reading skills, or better still that he was with her. Her research took a good part of the day, with a quick break for a burger, to gather the information she needed. The sun had already begun to set when she left the hall with long lists of names and addresses.

Castle was freshly dressed and waiting for her. "You want to go to dinner?" he asked.

"Were you planning to sit and stare at me while I eat?"

Castle shook his head, crinkles forming at the corners of his eyes. He pointed to a stack of menus on the small writing desk. "This place is prepared for denizens of the night with more than blackout curtains. Almost every one of those places serves carpaccio, tartare, or both. Fancy raw meat. I think I can manage to get some of it down while you indulge in something that actually touches a stove. If they serve it here, I might even like it."

Beckett thumbed through the pile. "Ooh linguine, and they have tiramisu too." Kate unconsciously ran the tip of her tongue over her lips. Castle's breath caught as he watched. "Alright Castle, if you're up for this, I'm in."

Castle's pants tightened uncomfortably at her answer. Up was right.

* * *

They were seated by a waiter who became particularly obsequious when he noticed the pallor of Castle's skin. He showed them to a table with a window overlooking the lake, and when requesting their orders hastened to point out to Castle that the meat for the carpaccio had been butchered only that afternoon. "Subtle isn't he?" Castle asked with wry smile.

"Really," Kate agreed with a roll of her eyes. "He must think you're a long lost Albu or something. That could work for us." She perused the wine menu, her eyes lighting on a favorite red. She turned the card to show Castle her choice. "Castle do you mind?"

Castle stroked her hand. "Enjoy, Kate. One of us should. Consider me your designated driver."

Castle was relieved to find that the thin slices of raw tenderloin in the carpaccio didn't disturb Kate, as his raw steak had at her apartment. She visibly relaxed as she twirled her linguine, sipped her wine, and savored her dessert. By the time Castle signed the check and flicked an errant speck of cocoa powder from the corner of her mouth, she reminded him of a cat, well fed and ready to be stroked. And he was just the one to do the stroking.


	15. Chapter 15

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 15

"Castle, do you want to try to see anyone on my lists before we go back to the hotel?" Beckett asked.

Castle consulted his watch. "I think it's a little late for healthy humans to go calling, but if they regard me the same way the waiter did, I could try by myself, later." Castle played with a button on her blouse. "There must be something we could do in the meantime, to pass the time."

Kate ran her foot up his leg under the table. "I'm sure we'll think of something."

Castle coughed and signaled for the check.

* * *

The corners of Kate's mouth were upturned in sleep when Castle slipped from the bed. Showering and grabbing fresh clothes, he sat at the desk, poring over Beckett's lists by the light of a small reading lamp. The factories he had seen the night before were on them and there was one factory that specialized in replicas of ancient weapons. He could easily excuse a visit as research for a book. As a writer of the macabre he could be expected to keep strange hours, and the shade of his skin would enable him to explain his real reason to anyone familiar with his malady.

Castle parked in a visitor's spot. The door was locked, but there was a buzzer to push for admittance. The face that greeted Castle was not pale, but the eyes quickly scanned Castle and motioned him in without a word. Castle was ushered into an office labeled "Andru Albu Manager." A white face looked up from the desk. "I don't know you."

Castle extended a hand. "Richard Castle."

"The writer?" Andru asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Research," Castle responded, wondering if he'd need his cover story.

Andru nodded. "I wasn't aware you'd joined our society. What are you researching?"

"Ancient myths," Castle replied, "especially about those who might have left - your society."

Andru sighed. "That's exactly what they are, Mr. Castle, myths. There are lots of us who would have liked to believe otherwise. We've all heard the stories. The older ones still tell them. I've had friends who've chased that dream. Each generation thinks it will be the one with the answer, but the only exits I've ever seen have been very painful - and fatal. I'm sorry."

"I'm still interested," Castle insisted. "Who are the older ones? Where can I find them?"

Andru shook his head. "Our family is very protective of our elders. That's information I can't give you. Look, the clinic at our hospital is very well stocked with any type of blood you might need and you look like you might be needing some soon. My advice is for you to avail yourself of our supplies and go home. You're not going to find your answers in Bellville. I'll have someone show you out."

Castle sat in his car considering what Andru had said. To give up and go home was unacceptable. He'd submitted his first novel to twenty publishers before it had been accepted. He'd found clues to Kate's mother's death when she'd sworn there were none. Together he and Kate had closed the most difficult cases. He was willing to bet an elder was on Kate's lists somewhere. The two of them could track the old one down. At least now he had a better idea of whom he was looking for. There was one thing Andru had gotten right. Fatigue was beginning to set in. The carpaccio might have been edible, but it wasn't blood. He headed for the clinic.

Getting blood in Bellville was no more complicated than checking out a library book. Castle had sent his medical and insurance information ahead, as well as information about shipping samples to Dr. Morris. The staff inserted needles as automatically as they tied their shoes, leaving almost no mark. The process was faster than it had been in New York, with Castle being finished in little more than an hour. He passed the time checking his social media and email. There was a message from Ryan that Cesar Albu had been committed to a locked psychiatric facility, with his lawyer offering no opposition. "He's the family bad boy and they want him put away," Castle mused. It was encouraging news, suggesting that Cesar's behavior was an aberration, even among the infected. It gave Castle hope that if he could keep the blood flowing into his arm, he could maintain control. He might even learn to fight what Lockerby had called the blood madness, at least until he tracked down the miraculous but elusive parasite.

Kate was still asleep when Castle returned to the cabin. He sat the desk going through her lists and using his laptop to find out whatever he could about the age of the Albus she had found. He found himself longing for what had often been his second home, the New York Public Library. What he found in old tomes often stretched back so much further than what was on the web. He did find a series of older references that had been scanned and posted to the web for public access. In a history of Eastern European families, he found several references to a Camelia Albu. Referring to an evergreen, Camelia seemed as much a title as a name. There was even a photograph of a portrait of Camilia, painted in the 1800's. There was a Camilia Albu on Beckett's lists. Could it be possible it was the same one? The idea seemed outlandish, but everything that had happened lately was outlandish. Castle couldn't find a current picture of Camilia, but he had no access to DMV records. Kate did.

Kate felt Castle gently stroking her cheek as he softly called her name. She stretched drowsily, her eyes still closed. "Need me for something, Castle?"

Castle brushed the hair from hair face. "More things than you can imagine, but right now I need the detective."

Kate's lids flew open. "What's going on?"

Castle explained about Camilia. Kate rubbed her eyes and ran a hand over her face. "Castle, that's a reach, even for you. But I'll see what I can do. I don't think I can get into the DMV data base from your computer. They'll check the IP address. But I should be able to do it on my phone, since it's N.Y.P.D. issue. She shivered as she slipped from under the covers.

Castle retrieved a shirt he'd worn earlier that night from the floor and handed it to her. "It's been getting colder. I'll see if I can find a thermostat. I'd warm you up more personally, but right now neither one of us needs the distraction."

Beckett reached for her her phone. "I'm going want a rain check on that, Castle."

"Rain, snow, sleet, or hail," Castle promised, "you have one."

Beckett spent a few moments bending over her phone before holding up a picture for Castle. "What's the matter?" she asked as he stared.

"Beckett just look at this." With a hand at the small of her back, he led her to the desk to see the portrait on his screen. "Tell me they aren't the same person."

Beckett shook her head in disbelief. "Oh my God! Castle, they are!"

A/N Much love for the reviews. I truly appreciate them.


	16. Chapter 16

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 16

Beckett shook herself. "Wait a minute Castle, it's probably just a descendant. I mean I look a lot like my mother. Sometimes people look like relatives, even distant relatives."

"But Beckett," Castle protested. "Look at the mole on her cheek, or more importantly the little scar on her lip. Scars aren't genetic, Kate. What are the odds of two different people having exactly the same scar in the same place?"

Beckett stared at the pictures again. "much as I hate to admit it, you have a point, Castle. So what do you want to do?"

Castle checked his watch. "It's close to sunrise. Can you go scope out her address today, see what you find? She wouldn't be awake, but you can see if anyone comes or goes or if there's any kind of security. Sunset is at four forty-five this afternoon. You can tell me what you've found and we can figure out our next step."

"Alright Castle," Kate agreed. "That actually makes sense."

* * *

Camilia Albu's house sat on the highest point in Bellville. It was solid and substantial, of red brick encircled by a porch. A profusion of evergreens surrounded the building. The only things visible through the windows were black drapes. Beckett had parked as far down the hill as she could and still maintain a view of the house. There was no activity. The music of John Coltrane spilled softly from Beckett's phone, and she relaxed into the leather driver's seat. It wouldn't be hard to get used to a luxury car. Traveling with a bestselling author had it's perks. It certainly hadn't been hard to get used to having Castle around. She just hoped that someday they'd be able to keep the same hours again.

Beckett was pulled from her thoughts by the arrival of an unmarked van. A courier jumped out carrying a cooler and deposited plastic pouches of red fluid into a small refrigerator on the porch. "Her own private bloodmobile," Beckett muttered. Beckett maintained her stakeout until the sun dropped below the horizon and a formally dressed man came out to the porch to retrieve the delivery. "A butler?" she wondered. With no signs of anything else happening, Beckett decided to return to the motel.

Castle was wide awake and ready to go when Beckett arrived. "Her own blood delivery and a butler," he mused after hearing Beckett's report. "And the DMV had an I.D. card, not a license. Sounds like she stays in and people come to her. It would be consistent with her age and her culture. Maybe the best thing would be for us to go calling."

"Us?" Beckett queried. "Don't you think she might be more comfortable with just you?"

Castle gazed at the gorgeous face topping the flawless body. "I need your dazzling beauty to charm the butler, but in the extremely unlikely event that doesn't occur, you can try your badge."

"Alright Castle," Beckett agreed, smiling despite herself.

Castle had half expected an ancient door knocker, but he rang the modern doorbell. To his surprise, the door was opened not by the butler, but by Camilia herself. Her piercing eyes raked quickly over Castle and Beckett. "A mixed couple. I don't see many of those."

Kate was taken aback for a moment but Castle plowed ahead."Ms. Albu, my name is Richard Castle. I'm a writer."

"I know who you are," she replied, "I have an extensive library, although the pictures on your book jackets show you with a much ruddier complexion. I assume your current condition is recent?"

Surprised at her bluntness, Castle just nodded.

"Well if you have anywhere near the level of curiosity of your Jameson Rook, I assume that you and..." Camilia raised an inquiring eyebrow at Kate. "You are Detective Beckett, my dear? The model for Nikki Heat?"

"Yes Ma'am," Beckett responded.

"Well Mr. Castle," Camilia continued, "I assume that you and Detective Beckett have been gathering all the information you can on what has befallen you and that's why you've come to see me. Am I correct?"

"You are," Castle confirmed.

"Come in then. Detective Beckett, if you'd like some tea, or something stronger, I can have Anton, my steward, bring it to you."

Beckett waved a hand to decline the offer. "I'm fine Ma'am."

Camilia motioned them toward a settee. "Start by telling me what you know so we don't waste time."

Castle outlined what he knew from his research and his conversations with Dr. Morris, with Beckett adding additional details about what she'd uncovered about the Albu family.

Camilia smiled approvingly. "It sounds like you've done excellent work and your Dr. Morris is quite insightful. One thing he hasn't deduced is that the virus may be dormant and passed on to one's offspring, where it may also be dormant until adulthood. That accounts for the generational nature of the disease within our family. I've never heard anyone propose a parasite as the origin of the curing fever before, but it makes sense. That illness arises around small lakes. They are probably the source. Unfortunately the lake on which Bellville borders is not one of them. There are only two, both quite small, isolated, and in my homeland. You are also correct that searching out human prey when there are other sources of blood is aberrant behavior. We do our best to suppress and discourage it, but it happens. If it is any comfort, it is very unlikely it will happen to you, Mr. Castle."

Castle sat straight up at Camilia's mention of a curing fever. "Ms. Albu, the 'curing fever', do the survivors actually recover from the virus?"

"I have only personally seen a few cases in all my time on this earth," Camilia replied. "In some of them there was no recovery at all, merely death, which some did regard as a cure. But for those who survived, they no longer had need of blood and walked in the sun. They also grew old and died in a normal span."

Castle leaned forward, almost leaving his seat on the small couch. "Ms. Albu, please, I need to know where those lakes are."

"Mr. Castle, I can have Anton give you the, as you say now, coordinates, but it may do you no good. Many have brought back the water, but it had no effect. If there is a parasite, it doesn't travel beyond its natural borders."

"Then I'll find it there," Castle resolved. "Whatever it takes."

"So be it," Camilia pronounced, and called Anton into the room.

"Castle, think about this a minute," Beckett urged as they returned to the car. "Even if you manage to find Morris' parasite, it could kill you. Do you really want to leave Alexis without a father or your mother without a son?"

"They're practically that way now," Castle answered grimly. "I can't go back to them like this. I'm going to Romania. If I can get Morris to go with me, I will. The parasite is his theory. If it's there, maybe he'll be able to figure out how to keep it from killing me."

"Then if you're determined to go," Kate decided, "I'll go with you."

Castle framed her face in his hands. "Kate you don't have to do that. You've done so much for me already, more than I could have ever hoped."

Kate covered his hands with her own. "Castle, you're right. I don't have to. I want to. We're partners - until the wheels come off."


	17. Chapter 17

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 17

Beckett gave the plane Castle had chartered a careful check. The window covers were down, with curtains serving as a second layer of protection. The cockpit was light tight, as was the lavatory. With a thirteen hour flight, time difference of seven hours, and no difficulties along the way, a seven A.M. takeoff would bring the plane in well within the hours of darkness, but the sun would be shining on the plane in between. If something were to happen, they needed to be prepared. Castle had left the apartment hours before she had, to receive a transfusion and take a van to pick up Dr. Morris, his equipment, and supplies. Morris had used his contacts to get an emergency medical designation for their flight and to clear the way for international transportation of blood products. The lakes Camilia had described were in Brâila province, requiring them to the land at an airport in Izmail Ukraine rather than in Romania. That had required clearance from both countries, adding additional complications. Aided by Beckett's fluency in Russian, the appropriate documents had finally been obtained, and the trip arranged. Hearing the grind of the opening of the cargo hatch and the clatter of feet on the narrow steps, she knew Castle had arrived.

Morris looked around in appreciation at the fully reclining seats, power outlets, and refrigeration facilities."Well done Mr. Castle. It appears you've prepared more than adequately. This should be quite an adventure."

Beckett felt an unexpected flare of anger. "Doctor, we're not looking for adventure, we're looking for a cure. We're counting on you to help make that happen."

"Of course," Morris replied, only slightly chastened. "I will do everything in my power to make Mr. Castle well. But we are opening whole new avenues of study. The possibilities are enormous."

Beckett was about to respond when the co-pilot emerged from the cockpit to give the required safety instructions. The three passengers strapped in, with Castle and Kate in adjoining seats and Morris further back in the plane. As the engines revved, Castle reached for Kate's hand. The plane took off into the darkness.

Castle slept through much of the flight. Kate got as much rest as she could, using some of her waking hours to study files of cases Ryan and Esposito were pursuing in her absence, and picking at the food the charter service provided. Morris appeared to have an inexhaustible supply of scientific articles on his tablet, sleeping even fewer hours than Kate.

The plane put down at Izmail Airport in Odessa. Once they cleared customs, a large SUV met the travelers to take them the short distance to the Premier Hotel in Izmail. The hotel was handy to downtown Izmail but in a quieter area with very little traffic. The old brick reminded Kate of Camilia's home in Bellville, but the accommodations were modern, with the hotel maintaining both a bar and a restaurant. Castle had booked a suite, complete with in-room refrigerators, allowing Morris to safely stow Castle's blood, and his analytical supplies.

It was almost daybreak by the time they were completely settled and Castle made sure all the drapes were pulled in his bedroom. "Are you sleepy?" Beckett asked.

Castle shook his head. "My internal clock is all messed up. You?"

"No I'm wired."

"There is a minibar. You could have a drink and maybe a snack," Castle suggested. "I'm betting you didn't eat much on the flight over." Castle brushed her face with his fingertips. "Unless there's something else you'd rather do?"

Kate ran her fingers playfully down the placket of Castle's shirt. "You know, Castle, there just might be."

A whisper rose huskily in Castle's throat. "What did you have in mind?"

Kate rose on her toes, bringing her lips close to his. "Castle, I think you'll catch on pretty quick."

Their mouths met in an eruption of heat, the barrier of clothing suddenly too much to bear. The tension that had built as they slogged through the plans for their journey, suddenly released with explosive force. They fell on the bed, lips pressed tightly and tongues seeking, while they tore at buttons and zippers. Garments flew in all directions as they came together skin to skin. The floor of the old building creaked beneath the bed as springs protested their desperate grasping. Amid muffled moans, waves of passion built to a final crest before the inevitable crash, and they found rare moments of rest in each others' arms.

* * *

The trip to Brâila province wasn't long, but it was tedious, requiring another inspection by customs. Victor, the driver of their hired car, fluent in both Russian and Romanian, was helpful, but coolers were opened and all of the supplies and permits for transport carefully examined. Their final destination was Lacul Sarat-Brăila, a small lake resort, from which the even smaller lakes Camilia had described could be reached. The area was a draw for tourists, but they were well past the season and both the air and water were too chilly for swimming. The presence of a rich American and his party was more than welcome, but the rooms posed a problem. Designed for a view of the lake, the windows were only lightly curtained. A conversation with an English speaking manager about Castle's allergy to sunlight drew a knowing look and the staff delivered and efficiently installed heavy drapes in Castle's room. "I have a feeling I'm not the first bloodsucker that stopped here while cure-hunting," Castle whispered to Kate as the workmen left.

"I just hope we have better luck than your predecessors, Castle," Kate responded. "I've always wanted to play Van Helsing."

Castle backed away in mock terror. "Now you tell me."

"Relax Castle, I'm all out of wooden stakes and holy water," Kate teased.

Castle drew her in for a kiss. "Good to know. We have a couple of hours of darkness left. We could grab Victor and check out the road to Lacul Sorina."

"A long as you don't push it on the time, Castle. It's a little early for a barbecue."

"I will endeavor to stay my rare and beautiful self," Castle quipped.

* * *

In comparison to the modern highways they had encountered, the road to Lacul Sorina was a throwback. While modestly paved near Lacul Sarat-Brăila, it soon deteriorated into packed dirt, until finally becoming a path that could accommodate nothing wider than Castle's shoulders. Castle shined a flashlight down the rough track through the woods. "Wow, and Lacul Sorina is the larger of Camilia's miracle lakes. Well she did say it was isolated."

"Castle, we'll need hiking and probably camping gear. Dr. Morris and I can take care of that while you're down for the day. I'm sure the hotel manager can point us in the right direction. Victor can help with any translations we need and afterward I can join you for a nap until sunset."

"Sounds like a plan," Castle agreed, slapping at a mosquito. "You might want to invest in some repellent too. I'm not the only bloodsucker around here."

Beckett reached around to goose him. "Just so long as I don't repel you."

Castle pulled her into his arms. "That, Detective Beckett, would be impossible."


	18. Chapter 18

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 18

Despite Beckett's obtaining several high powered flashlights, the hike to Lecul Sorina was treacherous. The group all carried large packs containing equipment and supplies for both camping and Doctor Morris' work, with Victor and Castle carrying the most weight. The path was strewn with dead branches, and animals could be heard scurrying, their eyes occasionally visible in the bright beams. The clouds of mosquitoes grew thicker as they approached the lake and though the prodigious application of repellent seemed effective, Morris commented that the mosquitoes were the most likely vector for spreading the parasite. It was close to daylight when they reached the shore, leaving barely enough time to set up a tightly woven black nylon tent to shield Castle from the day's rays. Beckett helped Morris and Victor pitch two more, one for Morris' equipment and another to accommodate the two men, before carefully shielding Castle's tent opening with her body and crawling in beside him.

Victor retired as well, while Morris took water samples, storing some and using others to inoculate petri dishes full of a variety of growth media. He deposited the dishes into a small battery powered incubator before joining Victor.

Beckett left her tent shortly before sundown to put out a meal packed by the hotel. Morris was already up, examining water samples under a microscope. Beckett stuck her head in the equipment tent. "See anything, Doctor?"

Morris looked up from a microscope, bliss lighting his face. "The water is teeming with life. Some are species I've never seen before, but there is one that resembles a plasmodium, a parasite that causes malaria. It could have the ability to enter red blood cells, especially if injected by a mosquito. We'll want to capture some and see if we get a match. I suspected insect involvement and brought traps."

"Great doctor," Beckett responded as enthusiastically as she could, while not at all sure that she wanted to be camping in an area with disease laden mosquitoes. She was even more thankful than ever that on their first trek through the woods, Castle had suggested repellent, which still appeared to be working. Using a lightweight folding table, and a battery powered lantern, she set up a spread of sausage, cheese, and pickled salad. The lake contained fish, but even if they could catch them, after Morris's report, her stomach turned at the idea of eating any.

Castle woke up and wandered out of the black tent, deciding to build a fire while the others were eating. While gathering firewood, he noticed a couple of dead squirrels and called them to Morris's attention. Returning to his tent for gloves, the doctor examined the carcasses and decided to do an impromptu autopsy. Castle offered his help, which consisted mostly of holding a lantern so Morris could see what he was doing.

Morris carefully studied slides under his microscope. "There are definite similarities to the effects of malaria," he reported. "This is very promising."

"Unless I end up like the squirrels," Castle muttered.

"Mr. Castle, the squirrels had no medical intervention," Morris pointed out. "If they did indeed expire of what you've referred to as a 'curing fever.' I should be able to keep the worst of your symptoms under control, although a high fever may contribute heavily to the extinction of the virus. You stand at least a fifty-percent chance of survival, perhaps even better."

Castle looked through the tent flap to make sure Kate hadn't heard what Morris told him. "Better than even odds," he considered, "I've done better with far less in almost every poker game I've ever played and many of the cases Kate and I've solved. It could be worse. He gazed at his skin, a ghostly shade in the lantern light, and pictured the blood lunacy of Morgan Lockerby. If he did need to be infected by what killed the squirrels, it was well worth the risk.

Castle helped Morris as much as he could until the doctor turned in for the night, then he walked, picking a path along the lake shore. Under the light of an almost full moon and a milky spill of stars never seen in the city, he studied the glints of brightness against the dark water. They were an apt analogy, points of hope in the blackness. Whatever the doctor found, whatever it took to get him well, he would do it. Castle returned to his tent and the comfort of Kate's warmth against his body, until she woke and emerged in the daylight and he lost himself in sleep.

The group camped at the edge of Lacul Sorino for two more days while Morris' cultures matured and he examined both water and the dead squirrels more carefully. He also examined the mosquitoes from his traps and gave Castle a transfusion. At the end of the third day Morris announced his conclusion to Castle and Kate. The plasmodium he'd first suspected was the prime candidate for the curing fever, but it did not appear that direct ingestion of the organism from the water would transmit the infection, nor was there a way to prepare an injection. In his opinion, that was why the Albu's attempts at cures had failed to work. Castle's best hope was to forgo repellent and allow as many mosquitoes as possible to bite him. "With any luck," Morris announced, "Mr. Castle will develop a plasmodium infection. There will most likely be an incubation period and when we get back to Lacul Sarat-Brăila I will do my best to keep him alive and as comfortable as possible.

Kate turned to Castle, her hand trembling as it grasped his. "Babe, are you sure you want to do this? If it comes on suddenly while we're in the woods, you could die. You could die anyway. Morris has no real way of knowing what will happen. All he has are dead squirrels."

Castle held her close, pushing her head against his shoulder and kissing her hair. "Kate, I have to do this. That's why we're here. It's what we came for. But if you don't want to go through it with me, I can have Victor take you to Izmail. You can stay there or you can take the plane home. I will understand.

Kate's shoulders stiffened in resolution. "'Til the wheels come off, remember? I'm staying. If you're determined to do this, I'll be there to hold your hand and remind you how stubborn you are."

"And wipe my fevered brow?" Castle quipped hopefully.

Despite her distress, Kate felt her mouth turning upwards. "Don't get carried away Castle. I don't think you'd even use a trope like that for Nikki and Rook."

"You're right," Castle agreed. "But if Rook went through a raging jungle fever, Nikki would be there to pour him a stiff drink and take care of whatever else was stiff when he came out of his delirium."

Kate smoothed a stray lock of hair from his forehead. "Castle, that I can do."

As they made their way back through the woods to the road and the car, Castle winced as mosquitoes attacked wherever his skin was exposed, leaving angry red welts. By the time he'd slept through the next day, his temperature had begun to rise.


	19. Chapter 19

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 19

The temperature in the room had been turned down as sweat coated Castle's face and despite her earlier protestations, Kate did her best to wipe it away. Morris had packed Castle in ice to bring his fever down just enough to prevent brain damage. Moments later, Kate turned the thermostat to the maximum. Under layers of blankets, Castle shook with chills. Kate crawled in beside him, wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing her body next to his to share her heat. "Doctor Morris, how long is he going to have to go through this?" she demanded through gritted teeth.

Morris shook his head. "I have no way of knowing. I've never observed the course of this disease before. In malaria an attack like this might last 6-10 hours, but the incubation period would be a week or more. As fast as this came on, as virulent as it appears to be, anything is possible."

"Well can't you give him anything?' Kate pressed. "I can feel his muscles cramping. He's moaning even when he's not conscious. He's obviously in a lot of pain."

Morris shrugged helplessly. "It may be the very intensity of the disease that destroys the virus. Any attempt I make to intervene more than I have already could sabotage everything we hope to achieve. When and if we confirm the virus has been vanquished, I can take palliative measures."

"Kate," Castle forced out through cracked lips, "it's all right. It's worth it. Just stay with me."

Kate grasped Castle's hand and snuggled more deeply into his side. "I will, Castle. I'm not going anywhere."

The cycles continued for days. Kate stayed by Castle's side, but she'd never felt more powerless. As he lay exhausted after yet another bout of chills, she reached out to stroke his cheek, suddenly realizing it was the first time she'd felt it roughened by stubble. She called Morris, who had retreated to the next room to check Castle's blood samples, and pointed at the shadowed jawline. "Look!"

Morris nodded. "I've seen signs of greatly decreased virus load as well. We may very well be seeing a successful course of treatment. We'll continue to observe."

Kate repressed the urge to sock him for his detachment, as he returned to his work. "Castle," she called softly, running her fingers through the fevered disarray of his hair, "you're beating it Babe, just hang in there."

Castle's eyes remained closed, but he raised his arm, searching for her hand. She wrapped her fingers around his and held on.

* * *

Castle fought his way to awareness. His eyes focused slowly, the figure fitfully dozing in a chair by the bed gradually sharpening into Kate Beckett. Her clothes were disheveled and her hair lank and stringy. Even in sleep she was holding his hand. Castle had never seen her look more beautiful. "Kate." Castle could hardly recognize his own voice as her name rasped from the dry depths of his throat.

Kate jerked awake. "Castle?"

"Last time I checked," Castle responded hoarsely. "Could you raid the minibar for some overpriced water?"

Kate gazed at him in amazement. "Castle you haven't drunk any water since Lockerby bit you. I'm going to call Doctor Morris and see what he says."

Morris came running at Kate's summons. He made a quick check of Castle's temperature."Slightly below normal," he noted. "How are you feeling Mr. Castle?'

"Thirsty," Castle responded.

"And not for blood," Kate added hastily. "He asked for water."

"Well get him some!" Morris ordered. "I'll give him another transfusion too. We should get his fluid volume up and replace the cells destroyed by the parasite."

Kate hurried to get a bottle of water and held it to Castle's lips. Castle took several swallows. "Thanks, that helped."

How about your other symptoms, Mr. Castle?" Morris queried.

Castle shook his head. "Other than feeling like I've been run over by two semis, I'm not sure. He ran his tongue through his mouth and brushed his hand over his face. "I'm getting my Don Johnson look back, but my teeth are still bigger. Besides that, I guess I feel - normal."

"Human teeth only retract in movies Mr. Castle. But I imagine a good cosmetic dentist can correct your problem," Morris offered. "As to whether the virus is truly gone, I can do an assay, but it will take time."

Kate pulled a knife out of her pocket. "This is faster!"

Castle put a hand up to stop her, even as she made a small cut across her palm. "Kate no!"

Kate held her bleeding hand in front of Castle. "Feel any urges Babe?"

Castle stared at the growing streak of red. Smiling, he shook his head. "Only to get you a band aid. You know you made that cut right across your heart line, right? Hope that doesn't mean you're breaking up with me."

Kate rolled her eyes. "Castle, if I haven't run away screaming yet, there isn't much chance of it happening now.

* * *

Kate helped a still wobbly Castle up the steps to the plane. The day was cool and windy but the sun was shining. Kate settled Castle into his seat "Are all the window covers up?" Castle asked.

Kate looked around the cabin. "Yeah, they are Babe."

"Good," Castle sighed, settling back. "I can't seem to get enough sunshine."

"I don't think New York is going to help much with that, Babe. From what I've been hearing from Espo, it's been cold and stormy. Maybe you'd like to go someplace nicer to recuperate, I've still got some time left."

Castle shook his head. "Kate, I need to get home. Alexis is going to forget what her father looks like and Mother has probably let her friends completely deplete my liquor cabinet. I have to get back to my loft before the chaos is irreversible."

Kate chewed her lip."Does that mean you're moving out of my apartment?"

"Kate, I have to. I have a daughter to raise. Mother's been filling in all this time, and judging from the way she raised me..." Castle shuddered. "Alexis may have developed an addiction to soap operas and be wondering whether she should have white or red with her peanut butter and jelly. But that doesn't mean I want to be away from you. I can't imagine being without you. You could move in with me. I could still cook you breakfast and we could carpool to the precinct. It would be great!"

Kate closed her eyes in thought. She wanted to be with Castle. She needed to be with Castle. But to give up her apartment, her independence, that was a step she wasn't sure she could handle. "Listen Castle, I don't want to be away from you either, but moving into the loft, disrupting your family, I'm not sure I'm ready for that. I'm not even sure it would be a good idea. How about this? I can spend some nights at the loft, especially if it isn't too upsetting to Alexis. When you're feeling up to it, we can work together at the precinct again. Then if we don't drive each other too crazy, we can talk about the next step." Kate extended her hand. "Deal?"

Castle extended his hand grudgingly. "I guess it'll have to be."

A/N I've changed the secondary designation from Supernatural to Sci-Fi because I think it's a bit more accurate at this point. I've tried my best to keep the science plausible. Thank you Wendy.


	20. Chapter 20

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 20

Castle bounced through the bullpen soliciting wish lists of actors the detectives thought should play their characters in the Nikki Heat movie. Determined to break through Kate's reticence to specify someone outrageously beautiful and sexy, Castle was proposing Kate Beckinsale when the phone on Beckett's desk rang.

Kate sighed in relief as she picked it up. Her relief was short lived as a voice reported a murder and proudly proudly admitted committing it. Kate snapped her fingers, signaling Ryan to trace the number, a phone booth in Grand Central Station. With Castle beside her and Ryan and Esposito following, Kate rushed to the terminal, gumball flashing and siren screaming. The killer was gone, his place taken by a body with five bullet holes.

* * *

Kate smashed her keys on the table in her apartment. The phone booth in Grand Central had contained hundreds of fingerprints. Isolating those belonging to the killer, if he had left any, would be close to impossible. CSU had found an overload of fibers and DNA to slog through, and a canvass produced the typical New York City see no evil hear no evil reactions. Lanie was conducting her autopsy, but Kate didn't expect to hear any results until morning. While she was waiting, she would have loved to curl up with Castle at the loft, but Alexis' friend Paige was staying over while her parents were out of town and Kate had decided it would be better to make herself scarce for a while. Glumly, she'd picked up the phone to order Chinese food for one, when she heard Castle's key in the lock.

Castle came in carrying two canvas bags full of groceries. "Knowing you, I figured your cupboard was bare," he announced. "Mother is home and the girls are scarfing pizza in front of a Zac Efron movie so I thought I'd come over and cook while Lanie is slicing and dicing. In the mood for carbonara?"

"That would be great Castle, thanks," Kate replied without enthusiasm.

Castle put the bags on the counter and took the few short strides to Kate. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"It's this case, Castle. When the killer reported the murder he called me Nikki as if he was a character in a book, but not one you'd written. He sounded proud of himself, like a trope evil genius, and you don't write those kinds of mustache twirling villains. He's playing out a part in some sick fantasy and it makes my skin crawl."

"Wow, you usually love the weird ones. It takes a lot to freak you out. Tell you what," Castle proposed, "I'll make the carbonara. I brought a bottle of red, too - wine not blood. I'm not having a flashback."

Kate laughed, despite her mood. "Glad to hear it, Castle."

"Anyway, you can kick back. We'll see what ideas we can come up with to help you forget about the case for a while. Then we can go see Lanie at the morgue in the morning."

"That really does sound nice, Castle," Kate agreed.

"Good." Castle pulled a bottle of Châteauneuf-du-Pape out of one of the bags. "Here, you can let this air while I cook."

Kate reached into a drawer to pull out a corkscrew. "Hmm, I'm getting some ideas already, Castle."

* * *

"Don't get up, stay in bed," Castle mumbled sleepily as Beckett's phone chimed, alerting her to a text.

Kate regretfully pulled herself loose from the circle of Castle's arms. The message from Lanie was terse: "Something you need to see. Get down here!"

Kate nudged Castle, who remained desperately trying to sleep. "C'mon Castle. We gotta go."

"The sun is isn't even up yet," Castle complained, before shaking his head in realization. "Wow, I still can't get enough sun." He kissed her bare shoulder. "But I can't be upset about long nights either. I just wish we could finish enjoying this one. Flip you for first shower, or do you want to do it together?"

Kate rolled her eyes. "Castle if we do it together we'll never get out of here. I'll make mine a quickie and you can take a quickie too while I'm drying my hair."

"Not my favorite usage of the word quickie," Castle commented, "but practical, Detective Beckett."

Lanie Parish had clearly put in a long night. Her hair was far from its usual perfection and her scrubs were wrinkled and stained. "What have you got, Lanie?" Kate asked.

Lanie pointed to five bullets lying under a large lighted magnifier. "Those, Kate. There's a letter on each one, hand engraved. The killer is sending you some sort of warped message."

Beckett pulled on a pair of gloves and began to manipulate the slugs. "Kinki?" Castle puzzled, looking over her shoulder.

Beckett shook her head grimly. "No, Nikki, Nikki Heat. Castle, this guy has some twisted interest in me."

"Hey, are you all right?" Castle asked, as he and Kate left the morgue. "I want to check on Alexis before she and Paige leave for school, but I can just Facetime her if you need me."

"No, go ahead Castle. I want to put together a briefing for Montgomery. I can meet you at the precinct later."

Castle put a hand on her shoulder. "You're sure?"

"Go see your daughter Castle," Kate urged. "After what happened, she still really needs you around. Maybe you don't see it, but she looks at you all the time, as if she's making sure you're there."

Castle nodded, pressing his lips together. "I do see it. I won't be long. Her first class starts at eight."

Castle arrived back at the precinct just in time to join Beckett as she was outlining the case for the captain. Ryan picked up a ringing phone, listened to a couple of words, and knocked on the door of Montgomery's office. "Beckett, phone for you. The guy's asking for Detective Heat."

Kate rushed out of the office and grabbed the phone, putting it on speaker. "Beckett," she emphasized.

The voice on the other end ignored the correction. "Nikki, did you get the first part of my message?"

"Yes I did," Kate confirmed, trying to keep her voice even while Ryan traced the call.

"Well, the second part is at the Central Park Carousel." The call ended with a click.

"Payphone near Central Park," Ryan reported.

"Send Karpowski and some unis," Beckett ordered. "He'll probably be long gone, but she can start a canvass. Let's move it to the carousel."

"What merry-go-round is he putting us on this time?" Castle wondered as they headed for the elevator.

* * *

The music played gaily and the horses bobbed as the carousel turned, revealing its gruesome passenger. "Someone turn that thing off!" Beckett yelled. "Cordon the whole area off now! We don't want some kid who wants to ride a pretty pony stumbling into our murder scene."

Ryan and Esposito hurriedly dispatched uniforms to the task.

Castle tapped Beckett on the arm, arm pointing to a line of approaching black SUVs. "Either a U.F.O. just landed in the park..."

"Or the FBI is here to claim jurisdiction over this case," Beckett finished through gritted teeth.

An attractive auburn haired woman debarked from the lead car. Though shorter than Beckett, she exuded an aura of power. She held up her badge and extended her hand to Kate. "Special Agent Jordan Shaw. Nikki Heat, I presume?"

Kate gave Shaw a perfunctory handshake, as her voice lowered darkly. "No, except to the lunatic who did this. Nikki Heat is a fictional character. I'm Detective Kate Beckett."

Shaw looked from Kate to Castle. "Right, I read about you in Cosmo. And your celebrity writer tag-along Richard Castle?"

Castle nodded. "Jordan Shaw? The Jordan Shaw who broke the Hudson Valley Strangler case back in 1991?"

"Yes, Jordan acknowledged, "I also play a mean game of scrabble. So, now that we know each other, how long have you two been sleeping together?"


	21. Chapter 21

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 21

Castle tried to sputter an answer while Kate stared at Jordan open-mouthed. "You can close your mouth, Detective," Jordan told her matter-of-factually. "It's pretty obvious. New Yorkers have very small personal spaces anyway, but the space between you two is even smaller. Also you both seem to have used the same shower gel this morning, very nice by the way."

"Wh - why is that relevant?" Castle finally managed to spit out as Kate blushed a bright red.

"Because it affects the dynamic of your working relationship, how much attention you'll be paying to each other as opposed to the case, and whether you'll miss a clue because you'll be too busy looking at each other," Jordan explained calmly, "so how long?"

Beckett swallowed. "Um, just a couple of months. Castle got sick because of a case we were working on and he needed... so I... and..."

Jordan nodded. "I get it. So you're still in the honeymoon stage, so to speak. Well I'll be watching to see how much it interferes with your performance. If I think it does, especially since you seem to be an obsession with this killer, you're sidelined, both of you. Do you hear me, Detective?"

Beckett's eyes hardened as they met Jordan's. "Loud and clear."

"Agent Shaw, you have nothing to worry about," Castle put in. "We actually enhance each others' performance. Oops! That didn't come out right."

Jordan was not quite successful at suppressing a smile. "We'll see, Mr. Castle. Now my people will be sweeping this place."

"My people are already doing that," Beckett protested.

"Well I have a lot more of them. And," Jordan added, "we have much better toys. So we'll be finishing your sweep and setting up our headquarters in your precinct. Your captain has already been informed."

"Bet Montgomery loved that," Castle muttered as Jordan moved away.

"It's politics, Castle. He'll go along with it. He went along with the mayor sticking me with you," she recalled, her mouth softening.

"Well that certainly turned out well," Castle offered. "Maybe this will too."

* * *

Castle stared in admiration at the smart board in the conference room the FBI had commandeered as their war room, until he shivered. "Did they turn down the heat in here?"

Kate regarded him with concern. "No Castle, if anything, it's warmer because of all the extra equipment. Morris warned you might get some kind of a relapse of that Romanian parasite from time to time. Maybe you should go see him, or at least go home."

"And miss this? No way," Castle declared, buttoning his jacket and deciding that if he got a chance, he'd sneak one of the pills Morris had left him. "I'll be fine."

"Okay," Kate agreed reluctantly, "but if you get any worse, you are going home, if I have to send you in a squad car."

"Understood Detective," Castle responded.

"So tell me about Agent Shaw. You seem to have followed her career very closely."

"Why Katherine Beckett, you sound jealous," Castle observed. "In fact the two of you are a lot alike. She's like the federal you. She cracked the Hudson Valley Strangler case when she was just twenty-five. Somehow she profiled that the perp was driving a Yugo, saved a girl's life. I have a natural admiration for that, just as I do for your prodigious deductive skills. But in case it escaped your sharp powers of observation, she's wearing a wedding ring. I don't poach and I don't cheat, Kate. You're the only supercop I want in my life."

Kate touched his arm. "Alright Castle, I'm sorry. Her equipment is collating a lot of data faster than we ever could. I understand why you find it exciting."

A computer beeped. "We have a suspect," Jordan announced. "A pinky print showed up both at Grand Central Station and on the victim's purse at the carousel. It belongs to a Donald Salt, a two-time loser on parole for manslaughter. And we've got an address. Let's mount up."

"What's wrong?" Castle asked as he and Beckett viewed Salt through observation as the unis secured him in the box.

Beckett chewed her lip. "It doesn't make sense, Castle. Jordan pointed out that this guy is smart. And he plans carefully, like the letters Lanie found on the second set of bullets: will. Nikki will what? The way he's teased us, taunted us, his overblown ego, it just doesn't jibe with someone who's been caught twice. There's something else going on here."

"Then we should get in there and find out what it is. Jordan is a profiler. You," Castle pointed out giving her a little punch in the arm, "are a master interrogator. Strut your stuff."

Beckett strode into interrogation and seated herself opposite Salt, staring coldly into his eyes. "So Donald, you like sending me messages."

Salt laughed. "I didn't send you anything, Detective. But the guy who borrowed my pinky print did."

"What are you talking about?" Beckett questioned.

"I was trolling Craigs list for... well never mind what, and I found this guy who wanted to take a cast of a pinky print of a recently released felon. He was offering five thousand bucks and all I had to do was suffer through the indignity of a false arrest and give you something. You can check. For the last few days I've either been at work or perched all night on a stool at Murphy's bar. I couldn't have killed anyone."

"What something?" Kate demanded.

"It's in the envelope they put all my stuff in when your guys brought me in," Salt told her.

Beckett nodded to L.T. to retrieve Salt's effects. When the tall cop brought them, she slipped on a pair of gloves and dumped them on the table out of Salt's reach.

"That's it," Salt pointed to a folded sheet of paper.

Beckett unfolded it and held it so Castle could read it. "This is just a series of numbers."

"It's a code, Beckett," Castle asserted, "look how the numbers are grouped."

"You're probably right. We'll check this bozo's alibi..."

"Hey!" Salt objected.

"We'll check this bozo's alibi," Beckett repeated, "but this may be another job for Agent Shaw's magic board."

Jordan Shaw drummed her fingers in frustration as she watched the numbers roll down the board. "It doesn't match any code in our data base. We need a reference, but what?"

"Wait a minute!" Castle exclaimed, pointing. That left column, all the numbers are less than three hundred. And the right column, the numbers only go up to two-sixty. It's _Heat Wave_! When you typeset a manuscript there are usually about three hundred words to a page and _Heat Wave_ is less than three hundred pages." Castle grabbed one of the copies Jordan had provided for her retinue and started looking up words. "I - will..."

"Wait a minute," Jordan's partner Avery interrupted, "uploading now."

Beckett read the words as they scrolled across the board. "I will kill someone else before midnight unless you stop me." She checked her father's watch on her wrist. "Midnight, that's only eight hours away. He's daring us - daring me - to stop him."

* * *

Castle brought Kate a steaming mug as she sat on a desk staring at a whiteboard where she'd posted all her clues. "Maybe this will help."

Kate shook her head as she wrapped her hands around the warm ceramic. "I just can't get it, Castle. I can't find the connection. The description we got from Salt is useless. It's nine o'clock already. He's going to kill again and I can't stop him."

Castle slid in beside her. "Kate this isn't on you. I wrote the book. If it's anyone's fault, it's mine."

"Castle that's ridiculous. The man's a psychopath. No one is making him kill. He's the only one responsible." She stopped as Castle looked down at her with a raised eyebrow. "Okay, I get your point, but that doesn't bring us any closer to catching him."

Avery poked his head out of the war room. "We've got something."


	22. Chapter 22

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 22

"The message Salt brought from our killer contained traces of formaldehyde, glutaraldehyde, and phenol," Avery continued after Beckett and Castle entered the war room. "One of the bodies had traces of glutaraldehyde and the other had phenol."

"The killer worked in a mortuary," Castle offered.

Beckett looked at him in puzzlement. "Castle how?"

Castle drew himself up. "Those chemicals make up embalming fluid. As a master of the macabre, I have to stay informed about such things."

Jordan gave a little nod. "Thank you Mr. Castle."

"There must be a thousand mortuaries in the city," Beckett assumed, even as Avery brought up a list on the screen. How do we check them all in less than three hours?"

"Can you cross reference mortuary experience with criminal records?" Castle inquired.

"Or prison job finder groups for ex-cons?" Beckett suggested.

Avery's fingers moved over the keys. "I can try. Yes! We're down to six."

"I want them all in our custody by midnight. Mobilize the troops. Get a team on every one of them," Jordan ordered, as she turned to regard Castle and Beckett. "You two really do improve each others' performance."

Beckett choked but Castle smiled in satisfaction. "Proven correct again."

* * *

Montgomery approached Castle in observation as he watched Beckett grill mortuary employees. "Is she getting anything in there?"

Castle shook his head grimly. "They all say the same thing. They work with dead bodies all day. Why would they want to make more at night?"

Beckett stomped out the door and banged her fist on the wall. "He's baited us! Just like with the fingerprint. He's wasting our time, running out the clock."

Ryan approached, his forehead a mass of furrows. "He's on the phone. He's asking for Nikki Heat. Shaw's tracing the call."

Beckett drew a shaky breath and picked up the phone. "Hello."

"Nikki, you were supposed to stop me," the familiar taunting voice intoned. "I wanted you to stop me."

"Just tell me where you are," Beckett urged. "We'll work something out."

Beckett could almost hear the sneer through the phone. "How does it feel to know you failed?" The line went dead.

"Got an address," Jordan yelled. "Let's move!"

* * *

As Jordan dispatched her men to search throughout a parking structure, Beckett stared at the unyielding empty concrete floor. "He was just here. The body can't be too far."

"Over here!" Ryan called. "A lot of blood. A woman's shoe. Got a broken heel."

"Stands of hair. Looks like she put up a fight," Beckett observed, "and there's four shell casings. There's no way she would've survived without medical attention."

"Then where's the body?" Castle puzzled. "He always leaves the body where he kills and he always kills in famous places where he can show off his work. He's changing up on us, which makes him more unpredictable and more dangerous.

Avery ran up to report to Jordan. "Structure's clear. There's no body."

Jordan looked around in frustration. "Where the hell did he put her?"

Beckett pointed to an abruptly ending trail of blood on the floor. "He put her in his trunk. That's why the blood trail ends."

Jordan nodded her agreement. "Alright, I'll have my people talk to the parking attendant, get a roster of monthlies on this floor in case this nutbar stole a car, and check the video." She turned to Beckett. "He's obviously putting on a show for you. Your captain has a unit on your apartment.I assume you're staying there at the moment." She glanced at Castle, who gave a barely perceptible nod. "Go home. Get some rest."

"It's not necessary. I'm fine," Beckett protested.

"No argument, Jordan declared. "You're no good to me if you're burned out."

* * *

Castle poured a glass of wine for Kate as she sat disconsolately on the couch. "You should decompress. When the body turns up, you should be ready."

"Aren't you having any?" Kate asked.

Castle looked away and shook his head. "I took one of Morris' pills," he admitted, sitting beside her. "They don't mix with alcohol."

"She reached over to feel his cheek. "Are you are right, Babe?"

"Fine," Castle assured her. "Whatever it was, worked. He held out his hand for her to see. "Steady as a rock."

"Yeah, well just don't become a rock and rolling stone," she teased. "No seriously Castle, you probably need the rest more than I do. You've been burning the candle at both ends, working cases with me and working on your new book. Naked Heat! I still hate the title."

"But Kate," Castle cajoled, "Nikki is based on you and you're beautiful naked. The cover art will be flattering, I promise. The gun will be positioned very strategically."

"I'm going to hold you to that or you may not like the positioning of your own gun," Kate warned. She rolled her eyes and shook her head. "And you got me off the subject. You need to take care of yourself, or do you want me to call Alexis?"

Castle threw a protective hand in front of his face."I'll be good. And speaking of good, I've still got some great stuff in the refrigerator for dinner, unless you want to lead Montgomery's protective detail a merry chase by going out. I bought some beautiful rib eyes I can grill, if you want to make a salad."

"Sounds great, Castle, I could use something to tear into right now."

Castle rose, smiling."Well that's better than having you tear into me."

Kate stretched upward and snapped her teeth at his earlobe. "We can get to that later."

* * *

Kate had been toasty with her back spooned into the curve of Castle's body, but now it was annoyingly cold. She reached back to feel behind her, finding nothing but empty bed. The reason became apparent as the rich aroma of freshly brewed coffee reached her nostrils. Pulling on her favorite purple sleep shirt, which Castle had stripped away in favor of other methods of keeping her warm the night before, she followed her nose to the kitchen, picking up the additional scents of vanilla and warming maple syrup."You're making pancakes."

Castle turned, spatula in hand."I thought you could use them. Your latte's on the table with some orange juice. These'll be done in a minute."

"You good, Babe?" Kate asked, massaging the small of his back through his robe as he slipped the last pancake onto a serving platter.

"Great," Castle responded, omitting the mention of downing another of Morris' pills with his first glass of juice. "Ready to hunt down our body snatcher."

Kate slid into her spot at the table. Castle started to take the seat across from her but sprang up again."Forgot the paper!"

"Castle, we don't really have time for the paper," Kate protested as he headed for the door.

"We should at least see what the press is saying about the ca..." Castle jumped back with a yelp as a body fell in through the open door, leaving bloodstains on the newspaper beneath it. Castle turned to Kate. "I think The Ledger just picked up a new story."

Kate sucked her lip into her mouth as she stared at the corpse on the floor. "Yeah, 'Detective Nikki Heat Flames Out.'"

Castle wrapped his arms around her as she picked up her phone to call Jordan. "Detective Kate Beckett is still hot on the trail. We're gonna get this guy."

A/N For those wondering why I didn't end at chapter 20, it was because too much about the Caskett relationship was left up in the air. Yes, he was cured, but then what? Are there aftereffects of the curing regimen? They're a couple now. How do they make that work? Where do they live? Why? I think getting into the _Tick Tick Tick/Boom_ scenario will help resolve some of those questions, which is why I did it. Some of you might have made a different choice. Some might notice that canon used ethanol (drinking alcohol) and methanol (wood alcohol) as components in embalming fluid and I mentioned glutaraldehyde and phenol. The components I gave are accurate and more importantly, less likely to evaporate before being detected by CSU, especially in contact with a body or in a warm pocket or room. We chemists can be downright persnickety sometimes.


	23. Chapter 23

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 23

Jordan Shaw looked down at the dead woman lying on Beckett's floor. "Now we know why he took the body."

On shaky knees, Beckett wished she could drop her mantle of professionalism and cling to the comforting solidity of Castle's arm, but in the presence of her team and the FBI, she could never show that kind of weakness. She stood straight, her voice holding firm."It was another message to me. He knows where I live."

"More than that," Jordan added. "He's saying he's disappointed in you. In his mind he gave you fair warning. If you had been smarter, you could have stopped him."

"If I had been smarter?" Beckett repeated incredulously.

Jordan put a hand on Beckett's arm. "Relax Detective. I'm profiling him, not agreeing with him. The guy's a total freak. Look, your sassy M.E. has her van downstairs. Why don't you and Castle accompany the body to the morgue and see what you can find out?" Jordan regarded Castle's robe and Kate's sleep shirt with pants hastily pulled up under it. "You might want to change first."

* * *

"I hear the body interrupted one of Castle's pancake breakfasts," Lanie said as she beckoned Beckett and Castle to the body to give her report.

Kate attempted a casual shrug. "Not the first time. Have you got the slugs? Is there another message?"

"See for yourself," Lanie advised, handing gloves to Beckett and Castle and indicating the bullets under her magnifier. Beckett manipulated the only slightly misshapen metal.

"An 'n,' a 'u,' an 'r,' and a 'b,'" Castle observed. "Nurb?"

Beckett couldn't quite manage to keep the tremor from her voice. "No, burn. His full message is 'Nikki will burn.'"

"Kate, that could mean anything," Castle pointed out. "It could mean you'd be angry, or that he thinks you'll go to Hell."

"He thinks I'll go to Hell alright! He wants to send me there," Beckett retorted.

"Well he's not getting his wish!" Castle declared. "Lanie what else have you got? Anything to ID the victim?"

"Well I found traces of formaldehyde on her," Lanie offered.

"That's from the killer, he left traces of that at other scenes as well. Anything else?" Beckett queried.

Lanie shook her head. "Uh uh, not traces. It was under her fingernails and in her hair. She worked with embalming fluid. I also found clay, polyurethane, and animal blood. I can't tell you her name but I can tell you what she did."

"She's a taxidermist," Castle and Beckett exclaimed together.

Lanie grinned. "Oh it's so cute the way you two do that."

* * *

Beckett and Castle joined Jordan in the war room. "Taxidermy, really?" Jordan puzzled.

"Embalming fluid plus animal blood equals Norman Bates' favorite pass time," Castle quipped.

"There are only seven taxidermy shops in the city. My guys ran them down and ID'd the victim. She works at one downtown. Her name is Sandra Keller. But the embalming fluid at the other scenes can't be a coincidence," Beckett asserted.

"Hey!" Ryan called from the doorway. "We just got a report that Sandra Keller may have had a run-in with the guy that matches the sketch of our killer we got from Salt. It was a guy whose Bichon Frise had been killed in the park by another dog, a Rotweiller. The customer was heartbroken. He wanted his Mr. Bumpkins preserved for eternity so he paid the deposit, but when he came back for the pooch, he couldn't pay the other half, so Sandra wouldn't give stuffed Bumpkins to him. He went ballistic and stormed out of the store. He came back, stole Bumpkins and a load of embalming fluid, and trashed the computer so there's no client list. "

Beckett's eyes widened. "That's the connection. One of our victims Michelle Lewis, was a dog walker. Didn't one of her clients say they had to put down their Rotweiller because she let it off the leash and it killed another dog?"

"And the other one, Ben Peterman was a lawyer," Castle continued. "Maybe our killer went to him for a wrongful doggy death suit and he refused to take the case. And if the nutcase was cuddling up to his deceased companion, he would have formaldehyde all over him."

"Have you got Peterman's notes?" Jordan called to Avery.

"Coming up now," Avery replied. "There was someone who wanted to sue over the loss of a dog, a Ben Conrad. Pulling up DMV."

A photograph appeared on the smart board. "Got you, you bastard!" Beckett exclaimed.

* * *

As the FBI and N.Y.P.D. assembled outside Ben Conrad's apartment, Jordan turned to Beckett and Castle. "You can holster your gun, Detective. You're both staying here."

"What? No, this is the final takedown," Castle protested. He turned to Beckett. "You can't let her do this.

"No, Agent Shaw is right," Beckett agreed regretfully "I'm the target. I can't compromise the team by walking into the line of fire.

Jordan put a hand on Beckett's shoulder. "It'll still be your collar."

Ben Conrad appeared as a shadow in the window of his apartment as the armored squad stormed his apartment and Beckett's cellphone rang, showing Montgomery's ID.

"Yes sir," Beckett answered.

"Beckett he's calling for you. We're patching you in."

"Nikki," came the familiar smarmy voice, "you think because you've found me you've won, don't you?"

The shadow raised a gun to his head. "Well you haven't. I was always in control and I'm in control now."

Beckett and Castle flinched as a shot rang through the night.

Castle and Beckett joined Jordan in Conrad's apartment. "He was shot with a forty-five," Jordan reported. "We're sending it to ballistics, but it's probably the one he shot the other victims with."

"And meant to shoot you with," Castle added to Beckett.

"No, he had something more spectacular in mind." Jordan indicated cellphones on the table along with large bottles of embalming fluid."

"He was building a detonator," Castle concluded.

Jordan pushed a button and "Good-bye Nikki," repeated over and over from the device.

"He was extracting formaldehyde from the embalming fluid to make cyclonite." Jordan added, indicated an assembly of chemical glassware."

Castle shuddered. "Nikki will burn. That's what he meant."

"Well I didn't," Beckett declared. "And we can close this case."

"And I can be out of your hair," Jordan added. "I should have time to check my daughter's homework and put her to bed."

Beckett damped her look of surprise. She hadn't pegged Jordan as a mother. Of course when she first met Castle, she hadn't pegged him as a devoted father either.

As Beckett and Castle returned to her unit, she could see that as the adrenaline ebbed, exhaustion was setting in on her partner. His face was pale and his hand not quite steady. "Speaking of getting home to daughters, I should get you to yours," she said. "And wasn't your mother planning to move in with her rediscovered flame Chet tomorrow? You should spend the night with them, get some rest. I'll see you in the morning."

Castle thought about Dr. Morris' pills in his pocket. He could feel the chill spreading through his body and he needed one, but he didn't want to worry Kate." Okay, he agreed, but I'll miss you."

Kate reached across for his hand. "I'll miss you too."

* * *

The pill helped, but Castle knew he should have been resting. Sleep wasn't even close, as he reviewed the case. Something was niggling at his mind. Something just didn't fit. Salt had been paid five thousand dollars for the cast of his pinky. Ben Conrad's apartment was full of expensive electronics and extraction equipment. But he didn't have the money to retrieve Mr. Bumpkins. It made no sense. Conrad had been shot on the right side of the head. Castle closed his eyes to picture the man he and Beckett had seen in the window. If the man in the window was Ben Conrad, he would have shot himself on the left side! "Ben Conrad's still alive!" he shouted, his chair falling over with a loud clang at his sudden rise from the table. We got the wrong man! Oh my God! Kate!"

Martha ran down the stairs from her room, followed closely by Alexis. as Castle pushed the contact for Kate on his cell phone and put it to his ear. "Dad?" Alexis called worriedly.

"Richard, are you all right? What's going on?" Martha questioned.

"Damn! She's not picking up," Castle exclaimed, near panic."Mother, we got it wrong. The killer's still out there and probably after Beckett right now. I'm going over there. I need you to call the precinct."

Castle rushed out the door. Alexis ran after him with his coat. "Dad, it's freezing out there." Castle pulled on the coat as he ran through the door of the building. A cab was just letting off a passenger and he grabbed it, giving Kate's address. Through the short but endless trip, he kept retrying Kate's number. C'mon, pick up, pick up. Please God, make her pick up." As the taxi approached the corner opposite Kate's building, Castle shoved bills through the pay slot and jumped out.

Unable to relax enough to sleep, Kate had decided to take a long hot shower. She'd left her cell phone in her bedroom and the pounding water erased any chance of Castle's ring tone penetrating her ears. When she finally turned off the spray, she heard his last desperate try as he headed for her building and still dripping, picked up the phone. "Castle, is everything all right?"

"Kate, no! Ben Conrad's not the killer. The killer's still alive, Kate, the killer's still..." The concussion of the explosion hit Castle as he saw glass flying from Kate's windows ahead of tongues of flame. He could think of nothing but reaching her. He took the steps two at a time and barreled toward her door, kicking it open. Barely able to see through the smoke, he called out to her. "Kate!"

He nearly collapsed in relief when he heard her answering cry.

Kate was in the tub. The shower curtain had been blown away and her robe and towels were on fire. Tears poured from her eyes from the smoke and a spasm of coughing held her in its grip. Castle wrapped his coat around her and carried her down the stairs and out of the building. A squad car had screeched to a halt in front and the faint wail of approaching fire engines could be heard in the far distance. Castle dropped to the curb, with Kate still in his arms.


	24. Chapter 24

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 24

Beckett, still wrapped only in Castle's coat, sat by Castle's side in the back of an ambulance. They both drew on oxygen tanks while an EMT bandaged Kate's arm. Karpowski walked up carrying N.Y. P. D. issue clothing and laid it next to Kate. "Whenever you're ready."

Beckett pulled away her mask. "I'm ready now." She signaled to the EMT, who left with Karpowski, closing the doors behind him. Beckett pulled on the t-shirt and pants under the cover of Castle's coat before taking off the coat and putting on the regulation police jacket.

Castle set his own mask aside as his mouth quirked. "Going commando?"

"Not much choice. If I have any underwear left up there it probably smells like an ashtray, and when the N.Y.P.D. mentions briefs, it's usually with disgust at the legal variety. I'm fine." Kate handed back his coat. "Thanks. You need this. It's freezing."

"Oh creepy!" Castle exclaimed. "You're sounding like Alexis."

Kate ran a fingertip over his full lower lip. "I am definitely not your daughter." Castle drew her to him, as banging sounded on the doors.

Jordan's voice penetrated the metal barrier. "Detective Beckett, are you up to a debriefing?"

Beckett pulled away, and pushed the doors open to admit Jordan."Not that I'm sorry you did, but how did you survive the explosion?" Jordan asked. "What tipped you?"

"I have - had - one of those wonderful ancient steel New York tubs. It protected me from the blast. But it was Castle who twigged. He warned me just in time."

Jordan turned to Castle, raising her brows for an explanation. He quickly put forth his reasoning that Ben Conrad couldn't have been the killer, as Jordan nodded. "But if our real killer shot Ben Conrad, then he must have been in the apartment all the time. How could we have missed him?" Jordan wondered.

"Let's go find out," Beckett suggested.

Jordan shook her head. "You're in no shape. And you're way to close to this. It's personal."

"Damn right it's personal," Beckett retorted. "He just blew up my apartment. This guy is mine."

"All right," Jordan agreed reluctantly, "but my rules. You do what I say and how I say it and there'll be a full security detail on you at all times."

"I don't need...," Beckett began to protest.

"Kate," Castle interrupted, "let them protect you, if not for your safety, for mine." Castle coughed dramatically. "I don't need to drag you out of any more burning buildings."

Beckett lightly punched his arm. "Okay Castle, if it'll make you feel safer."

Accompanied by Jordan and a full retinue of FBI agents, Beckett and Castle searched Ben Conrad's apartment. Beckett spied a shelf that seemed out of place and pulling on it released the door to a hidden room. Duct tape and other bonds made it obvious that someone had been held prisoner. Phony facial hair and clothing necessary to create a clone of Ben Conrad were neatly laid out. Jordan gritted her teeth. "S.O.B. was hiding in here all the time. And he's a chameleon, he could be anyone. I'll get the evidence team down here, see what they can find."

Beckett slumped at her desk at the precinct, head wearily in her hands. Castle was comfortingly nearby in his usual chair, when the phone rang. "You're supposed to be dead," a voice taunted. "it was supposed to be over. Now I have to kill again, Nikki, and it's your fault."

A woman's desperate protests could be heard in the background before the sound of gunshots exploded through the receiver.

* * *

Beckett stood with two evidence bags in her hands as the M.E.'s van pulled away with yet another victim. Beckett held up a bag containing a hot pink cell phone. "He used hers so we could trace the call and find her." She waved the other bag. "This is her I.D. badge. Her name was Gloria Rodriguez. She worked in a hotel in midtown."

"Probably on her way home from work," Castle guessed.

"Found a slug," Jordan called.

"Letter etching?" Castle asked.

"No it's clean," Jordan responded. "The other shootings were planned. This one was improvised, done out of anger."

"Because I lived," Beckett declared flatly.

"You can't blame yourself for that," Jordan replied, her jaw falling open as a realization hit. "Wait, how did he know that you lived?"

Beckett pictured the crowd gathered around her burning apartment. "He was watching, at the aftermath."

"My profile tells me that he was watching at all the scenes," Jordan agreed thoughtfully. "But we compared crowd photos, did facial recognition. We didn't find anything."

"That's because he was dressed as one of us," Beckett proposed. "You said he's a chameleon. He blended right in."

"Okay, I'll have my people go back over all the crime scene photos, all the video footage; your people can run a canvass of the uniforms, see if they saw a cop they didn't recognize," Jordan decided. "Until they come up with something, you two should go home, take the chance to grab some downtime. I know I'm going to."

Beckett fought against the tears that suddenly sprang to her eyes as Jordan walked away. "Castle, I don't have a home anymore."

Castle pulled her close against his chest. "Kate, I am so sorry you lost so much that was precious to you. And I promise, after we catch this guy I'll hire a team to sift through the rubble. We'll save whatever we can. But you do have a home. We've been dancing around living together since we got back from Romania, but now it's been taken out of our hands. Come home with me. It's a safe building, and it'll be even more so with your security detail. You have things there, your cherry stuff is in my bathroom and you even left some pretty sexy lingerie if I recall, especially what I bought you for Valentines day."

Kate smiled despite herself. "I know Martha was moving out anyway, but what about Alexis? How is she going to feel about a permanent intruder into her territory?"

"Hey, she managed when I was married to Gina and I don't think she liked her nearly as much as she likes you. Actually she admires you, especially since you don't take any crap from me. I think she'll enjoy having you around."

* * *

As Castle came through the door, Alexis ran headlong into him, clinging in a monster hug. "Dad, I'm so glad you're all right. Gram and I saw pictures of the fire on the news. It was awful!" Kate was surprised as Alexis shifted her attention and her hug. "I'm so glad you're all right too, Detective Beckett."

"Come," Martha called, gesturing at a fully laden table. "I appealed to Giuseppe at Fratelli's for sustenance."

Castle pictured the gray-haired baker-owner who never took his eyes off Martha when they popped in for pastries and espresso. "I bet you did."

Martha caught the reek of smoke still clinging to both Castle and Beckett. "Or maybe you two would like to freshen up a little first."

Castle stuck his nose down his t-shirt. "Whew! I think you're putting it politely mother. He offered his elbow to Kate. "Avail yourself of the facilities, Detective Beckett?"

Kate slipped her hand through the crook of his arm. "Thank you, Mr. Castle, I believe I will."


	25. Chapter 25

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 25

Steam poured out of the shower enclosure as Castle and Kate stripped off their smoke and sweat infused garments and prepared to step in. Kate tentatively stuck two fingers under the spray, while Castle taped plastic over the bandage on her other arm. "Castle you know I like it hot, but that's a little warm even for me."

Castle reached for the taps to moderate the temperature. "Sorry, I thought it was a little chilly in here."

"You all right Babe?" she asked.

"Fine," Castle replied too quickly. "Just coming down from the adrenaline high. Long night's catching up to me."

Kate stared at him dubiously. "I think that may not be all that's catching up to you. You should call Morris."

"I will. After we catch the killer," Castle promised. "But look at you. That explosion really slammed you around in that tub. You've got enough blues for B. B. King."

"Etta James was a lot more my style, Castle, but I am a little stiff. You could wash my back."

"Anything to help my lady," Castle replied, reaching for a loofah. "I can wash your hair too, if you don't want to reach up that high. You've got little bits of ash."

"Sounds good." Kate closed her eyes and breathed in the scent as Castle squeezed her cherry shampoo into his palm and began to work it though the fire-kissed strands. "You know Babe, if you ever give up writing, you could get a job in a salon. You're good at that."

"Yeah well, years of practice with a pint-sized redhead. I remember when she saw some rocker on TV with blue and red streaks in her hair. Alexis thought she could do it with finger paint. The housekeeper threatened to quit when she saw the tub."

Kate laughed at the mental image. "I can imagine. I hadn't really thought about you having a housekeeper, Castle. I don't think I've ever seen her. I knew someone was cleaning up after you and I didn't think it was Martha."

Castle rolled his eyes at the thought. "No, Mother's inclinations don't lie in that direction. Alisha is only here two mornings a week. The rest of the time Alexis and I take care of it. Alexis makes a pretty tight bed. I instructed her well. We used to have inspections at boarding school."

Kate imagined Castle on his knees teaching a tiny Alexis to make hospital corners. The scene was charming, but also daunting. The occupants of the loft were a closely knit family unit. She wasn't sure where she'd fit in. "Castle, I'm beginning to wrinkle. I think we're done here."

"Well Mother is waiting to stuff us with Fratelli's finest," Castle responded.

By the time they made it back to the table for Martha's post midnight snack, Alexis had turned in. Despite an infusion of sugar and aromatic caffeine, Kate's head felt heavy on her neck. She could see Castle wasn't much better. "Ready to catch a nap, Castle?"

"Naps are good," Castle agreed. "Excuse us, Mother?"

Martha waved them away. "Go, go!"

Sinking into the welcoming softness of the mattress, Castle pulled Kate to him. "Welcome home," he murmured, closing his eyes.

Alexis had left for school and Martha for an audition before the call came. The same faux cop had been spotted at all the crime scenes. There were photos and screen captures. Castle felt a lot steadier with a few hours of sleep under his belt, and he and Beckett made their way to the Twelfth.

* * *

Beckett slammed the last of a pile of photos to the table in the war room. "Thirty photos of the guy and no clear picture of his face! We're no closer than we were."

"No, we just need to go at this from a different angle," Jordan counseled. "All the clues we were getting before were confusing because our killer was masquerading as Ben Conrad. But now we have to look at Conrad as the first victim."

"Yes!" Beckett exclaimed. "For the killer to pretend to be him, he needed to intersect with Conrad's life somehow. Here!" Beckett led the group back to the white board. "These are the pictures of Ben Conrad's apartment. See the poster? He was a Knicks fan. But what's missing from these pictures?"

"Taste?" Castle suggested.

"No, a television," Beckett pointed out. "How did he watch games? He didn't have a car. He must have walked to a sports bar in the neighborhood to watch the games."

"That's true," Ryan commented. "A Knicks fan has to share his pain."

"There's also no internet connection," Beckett continued, "but we know he was hunting for job. That's why he was short on money. He did have a laptop. He would have been sending out resumes, maybe from some local coffee shop with wi fi."

"I can generate a list," Avery said, heading back to the war room.

"Good," Beckett agreed. "Ryan, you and Espo check the coffee shops. Castle and I will take the bars."

Castle wiggled his eyebrows. "Ah, establishments where I have massive experience."

"I don't think I want to know," Kate teased.

* * *

Castle slogged through yet another barroom door. You know, pub crawls are supposed to greet you with a welcoming smile not, "No, we've never seen the guy before. Keep moving," Castle complained.

Beckett pointed to a banner hanging over the bar. "Cheer up Castle, I have a feeling this place is different."

"Home of New York's very own serial killer, Ben Conrad," Castle read. "That's different, if inaccurate."

Beckett approached the solidly muscled woman behind the bar and flashed her badge. "You really need to take that down. This is an ongoing investigation."

"Just trying to get an angle," the woman explained. "I own this place. You oughta know what it's like to be a woman in a man's business. You need every advantage you can get."

"Yeah," Beckett agreed, "and I need one now. Tell me about Ben Conrad."

"Weird guy," the bar owner opined. "Watched the games, but mostly talked about that little clump of fur he called a dog."

"Did he hang out with anyone?" Castle questioned.

The owner nodded her head. "Yeah, he took up with someone a couple of weeks ago. Looked kind of average, but another weirdo if you ask me. Birds of a feather. They mostly sat at that table over there."

"This other guy, did he use a credit card to pay his tab?" Castle asked hopefully.

"Nah, strictly cash. Not much bother except when he asked me to call him a cab."

Beckett leaned excitedly over the bar. "Do you remember when that was?"

The woman snorted in disgust. "Yeah, I remember exactly when it was. The Knicks were in overtime and I missed the end of the game because I was on hold. Then the jerk didn't even tip me."

* * *

"Cab's drop off point was Varrick and Downing, Beckett announced to the gathering in the war room, clenching her fists in frustration. There must be fifty thousand people living within walking distance of that corner. And the sketch from the description the bar owner gave us is so generic it could be anyone. We've still got nothing."

"No," Jordan disputed. "We know a lot more now. We know he's high I.Q., but constantly needs to validate it, so he's probably a member of Prometheus or Mensa."

Beckett shuffled uncomfortably. "What's the matter?" Castle whispered.

"I joined Mensa when I was fourteen," Beckett admitted. "It wasn't so much to prove I was smart, but for the boys. There was a male to female ratio of three to one. Then when I realized I had no trouble attracting male attention anyway, I dropped out."

"That's so funny," Castle commented, "I joined as a teenager too, but dropped out when I realized there weren't enough girls."

Jordan cleared her throat. "Detective Beckett, Mr. Castle, would you like to share with the class?"

"Please go on Agent Shaw," Beckett urged as heat infused her face.

"Now in addition to those memberships, this is a list of publications he would probably subscribe to." Jordan went on.

"Hey, I get half of those," Castle protested.

""And you kill people for a living, Mr. Castle - in your stories," Jordan returned. "Now all of these things are little pieces, but put enough of them together, and we may get lucky."

Avery programmed the computer to run correlations between Jordan's lists. "Seventeen hits," he reported.

"Cross reference against our criminal data base," Jordan ordered, "This guy must have been in trouble before. No one this crazy goes through life without some kind of run-in with the law."

"Negative," Avery reported. "Huh, wait. This guy, Chris Doherty, according to his Social Security Number he died six years ago."

Castle's face lit like Christmas tree. "He's living under a stolen identity! He's got to be our guy."

Avery worked at his keyboard. "Running facial recognition. Ninety-five percent match with a Scott Dunn, heavy juvie file, a person of interest in an unsolved murder and a conviction for arson where he seriously burned his hands."

"F**k," Beckett swore, "no wonder we never found any usable prints."

"Let's saddle up!" Jordan commanded.

"Beckett, what's that funny look?" Castle asked, as they headed for her vehicle.

"Castle, I was just wondering, given your profile and your obsession with death, if you'd ever given any thought to committing a murder outside the pages of your books."

Castle shook his head. "No I'll stick to paper, much more lucrative, much less prison time. Although the way this guy's come after you, I've given shooting him some serious consideration, preferably in the most painful places possible."

"Yeah," Beckett agreed, "so have I."


	26. Chapter 26

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 26

To Castle it appeared that half the population of Of New York had converged on Scott Dunn's apartment. The FBI had brought a trailer large enough to accommodate a family, complete with computers, view screens, and communications. A squad in full armor stood ready to smash in a door and take Dunn down, without mercy. Unfortunately, Dunn was not thoughtful enough to be at home.

Jordan and her people, accompanied by Becket and Castle, examined Dunn's lair. The decoration was a testament to Dunn's madness. A twisted shrine to Nikki Heat decorated a wall. Murderous writings abounded. They included one based on a murder spree on the West Coast, where the FBI has closed the case after an assumed perpetrator, much like Ben Conrad, had appeared to commit suicide. Dunn had pulled off his con before, without Castle's perceptive mind around to crack the deception.

Castle flipped open a copy of Heat Wave. "Hey, I signed this. 'To Scott, write what you know.'"

"Do you remember him?" Beckett asked.

Castle shook his head. "No, but I sign thousands of books." Castle wandered around the room picking up a manuscript. Unfortunately it looked like he followed my advice. This is all about the murders he's committing now and he portrays his character as always one step ahead of Nikki Heat."

"Well let's hope that knowledge has come to an end. Put everything back where you found it," Jordan commanded. "Let's un-ass this place. With any luck we'll catch him coming back." Castle left with the group, but slipped the manuscript under his coat.

Jordan returned to the trailer with Castle and Beckett to monitor the operations, observing on the screens, as agents occupied tables outside a nearby coffee shop and posed as delivery people, while snipers were positioned on rooftops. Castle flipped through Dunn's manuscript. "Wow, he's got everything in here, right down to the letters on the bullets."

Jordan turned to him in annoyance. "Mr. Castle, what part of un-ass didn't you understand?"

Castle looked up sheepishly. "All of it."

"Well for future reference, it means get out and leave everything as it was." Jordan was distracted from her lecture by the sight of a sniper too visible on a roof. She instructed Avery to move him. When Avery responded that the FBI had no sniper there, Jordan realized to her horror that it was Dunn and their operation had been uncovered. "We've been blown! Go hot! Go hot, now!" As her agents rushed from their positions, Jordan rushed to the door of the trailer, followed by Beckett and Castle. She barred Beckett's way. You're the target, I can't have you going out there."

Jordan slammed the door behind her leaving Beckett staring at the bare metal. Castle put his arms around Kate in consolation. "I understand. That's how I feel when you make me stay in the car."

Clenching her jaw, Beckett took Jordan's seat in front of the monitors. She spotted Dunn running toward the subway and barreled out of the trailer, skillfully weaving through pedestrians while Castle attempted to follow in her wake. "Stop! Police!" she yelled, more with the hope of clearing the sidewalk than with any illusion that Dunn would comply. Dunn vaulted the turnstile, and Beckett followed, but his longer length of leg allowed him to board a train ahead of her just as the doors closed. Dunn grinned triumphantly through the window in the door as the train pulled away. Beckett reached for her phone to put out an alarm to catch Dunn at the next station, but her signal couldn't penetrate the underground depths.

Beckett returned to the trailer to be greeted by a breathless Castle and a furious Agent Shaw. "You're out!" Jordan declared. "I told you to stay in the trailer."

"But he was getting away!" Beckett protested.

"I need people I can trust to follow my orders. You should have called me. I could have had my people converge. We could have contacted the Transit Authority to hold the trains. But you let your anger get the best of you and went after him on your own. Now he's gone. You're benched Detective, until we catch this guy."

Beckett stood paralyzed, staring at Jordan unbelieving. Her muscles softened only slightly as Castle put an arm around her. "C'mon Kate. Let's go. There's nothing you can do right now. Let them spread their dragnet through the subway. Maybe we'll get lucky and the cameras down there will catch him." Beckett gazed back angrily over her shoulder as she let Castle lead her away."

* * *

Droplets splattered as Kate slammed the latte Castle had made for her to the surface of the table in the loft. She angrily grabbed a napkin to sop up the mess. "Dammit Babe, I was so close. If there hadn't been so many people on the platform, I could have used my gun. It would have all been over by now."

"Kate you're too good a cop to endanger innocent civilians. Dunn was probably counting on that. This is not your fault," Castle insisted. "That subway was an escape route. It was Agent Shaw's operation. She should have had it covered. She probably bounced you because she was feeling guilty about her own error. She had to put it on someone. You shouldn't have had to try to clean up her mess."

Beckett sighed. "But she was right, Castle. If I had called her, she might have been able to box him in or hold the trains. I acted without thinking. There was no excuse for that. She was right to kick me loose. In her shoes I would have done the same thing."

"Kate you're human and no human is perfect, not you, not Agent Shaw, not even me, although if you repeat that, I'll deny it." Castle's large knuckles lightly caressed her cheekbone. "But the human in front of me is still pretty terrific."

Kate took hold of his fingers, holding his hand to her face. "I don't think I could get through this without you."

"There's been a lot in the last few months I couldn't have gotten through without you either," Castle pointed out. "I think I'm the one who's still in the hole here. But it just proves we can we can do anything together."

"So Castle," Kate wondered, "how do we get through tonight together? Even if it weren't for the caffeine, I know I couldn't sleep."

"So why don't we just climb into bed and see what develops?" Castle proposed. "You can at least try to relax a little. There's no substitute for a good cuddle."

Under a puffy comforter, Kate nestled into Castle's side, feeling the tension slowly drain from her body in the warmth flowing through the thin cotton of his t-shirt. Slowly another kind of tension began to invade her awareness. She felt guilty as the urge overcame her in the midst of such calamity, but her need grew to irresistible proportions. Her lips found Castle's, not with gentle persuasion but with urgent demand. He responded instantly, before pulling back. "Kate are you sure this is what you want right now?"

Her mouth had no use for words as it found his again. Grasping his hand, she brought it to the heat radiating from the center of her need. Any doubts he had were quickly vanquished and he pulled her into the life-affirming reassurance of his embrace. Heat rose around them and all thoughts of Nikki Heat were lost in the flames. Finally, fires banked, Kate's eyes closed in the restorative peace of slumber.


	27. Chapter 27

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 27

The smell of bacon teased Castle's nose awake to the empty bed beside him. Pulling on a robe, he followed the savory scent to the kitchen where Beckett was cooking and had already put out breakfast for Alexis. Kate turned from the stove to smile at Castle and poured a cup of coffee from the French press on the counter. "Here Babe."

Castle sipped the warm brew appreciatively. "Ah, the upside of not rushing off to the precinct."

Kate's smile faded. "If you can call it that."

Kate's train of thought was interrupted by Martha sweeping down the stairs. "She cooks!"

"Castle was my chef when he stayed with me, the least I can do is return the favor now and then."

Castle crunched a crisp strip with gusto. "Not necessary, but certainly appreciated. Mother, what happened to your move to Chet's love nest?"

"Richard don't be ridiculous," Martha scolded. "With a serial killer on the loose? I'm with my family. Besides, he got called away on business. I can move anytime."

"Mother, you were never quite convinced about that move in the first place. I get the idea that your enthusiasm has waned even further."

Martha waved a hand dismissively. "I just need to maintain an air of mystery, of intrigue. I don't want to be taken for granted."

"Martha, I don't think anyone could ever..." Kate was interrupted by the ringing of her cell. The color drained from her face as she turned to Castle. "That was Avery. Agent Shaw called her daughter last night to say she'd be there to tuck her in and never showed up. Her car's where she parked it before the raid yesterday and there's blood in it. He wants us back in."

* * *

Beckett regarded Jordan's car with a practiced eye. "From the spatter pattern it looks like he got behind her in the back seat and she struck back it him, most likely an elbow to the nose. Beckett moved to follow a trail of blood drops. "He led her away this way and then probably forced her into a car. But where did they go? Obviously not his apartment. We need to check whatever history we have on Dunn, see if there's someplace he might run."

Avery shook his head. "Already done."

Beckett's cell buzzed. The ID said Jordan Shaw, but a video flashed on the screen of Jordan gagged and tied to a chair. Dunn's taunts stung through the speaker. "Got a friend of yours here, Nikki. If you want her to live to see another day, you'll meet me at eight tonight - alone. I'll send you the address. And Nikki, if I see any other cops, there will be another death on your head."

Avery stared as the video from Beckett's phone played over and over on the screen in the war room. "This could be anywhere. The window is covered. There's nothing to go on!"

Castle pointed to a tiny corner of the window where the tape on the blocking plastic had come loose. "Maybe not. There's a shadow of something there. Can you enhance that?"

Avery frantically worked his keys, enlarging the image. "What are those? Buildings?"

"Bridge towers," Castle corrected, that's the Whitestone."

"That view could be from hundreds of places," Avery noted in frustration. We need another point of reference."

"Wait! Can you bring up the sound in the background?" Beckett queried.

A screech and a grind grew louder. "That's the sound of an 'el'" Castle realized.

Avery leaned toward the screen, his fingers working."I'll bring up a map, see where an elevated line intersects the line of sight." Images appeared.

Beckett pointed. "That's the IRT Pelham line. The intersect is the Zerenga station." Images continued to move as the computer plotted coordinates for the exact building. "That's it! Seventeen fifty-six forty-eighth Avenue the Bronx. That's not far from where I'm supposed to meet him."

The FBI set up surveillance outside the dilapidated industrial building. Infra-red sensors showed two glows of body heat on an upper floor. "You can't just go storming in there," Beckett told Avery. "She'll be dead before you can even get close."

Avery nodded. "Agreed, Detective. Your meet with Dunn is scheduled for an hour from now. I'll set up my people in there. When he leaves, we'll get him. You and Castle stay here. We can't take a chance of him spotting you."

Castle paced the trailer after Avery left. "It's wrong!"

"Why Babe?"

"Dunn has based what he's done on my work and this just isn't the way I'd write it. He wouldn't be that careless. The sneak peek through the window, making the video when the train went by, it's like the Millennium Falcon leaving the Death Star. It's too easy. This is a trap, Kate. It's a lure. He's baiting Avery and his men into that building while he watches from somewhere else. Then with as much embalming fluid as he had, he's made more cyclonite. I think he'll pick his time and do what Darth Vader did to Princess Leia's homeworld. Boom! And he'll be watching, just like he did at the other crime scenes."

Beckett grabbed Castle, turning him to face her. "Babe, if you were writing this, where would he be watching from?"

Castle pointed at the screen. "Here, he'd be watching from here."

Beckett headed for the door of the trailer. "Alright, c'mon." She turned back handing him the secondary piece from her ankle holster. "Here. I hope you're right about us being able to do anything together."

As they made their way up the stairs in another decrepit building, they could hear Dunn's voice from above. "I'm almost sad to see it come to an end, Agent Shaw. You know, I expected more from you."

"Castle," Beckett whispered, "I'm going to try to draw him away. You free agent Shaw."

Beckett topped the stairs, pointing her gun at Dunn. "And here I thought it was me you were after."

Dunn gave her a greasy smile. "Nikki, you came."

"Put your hands up Dunn," Beckett commanded, "or I will take you down."

Dunn's smile widened into a grin as he raised a hand holding a detonator. "I have a better idea, Nikki. You put your gun down or I'll detonate nineteen pounds of cyclonite and blow the team of feebles across the street to fairy dust."

"They're not across the street," Beckett bluffed. "If they were, why would I be here? Face it Dunn. This is the final chapter and Nikki Heat always wins in the end."

"No!" Dunn shouted in fury, dropping the detonator and knocking the chair with Jordan Shaw to the unforgiving floor.

Beckett aimed and fired, but Dunn was moving away. Beckett followed as Castle moved up the staircase and ran to Jordan. He flipped the chair upright, tore off her gag and began to loosen the tape at her wrists."

"Where's my team?" Jordan demanded.

"Across the street, sitting on nineteen pounds of cyclonite," Castle replied grimly, pulling off most of the tape."

"Go, go help her," Jordan urged. "He can flank her. I got this."

Beckett cautiously made her way through the building. "Dunn, give up. No one else has to die." Beckett was knocked to the floor, her gun skittering across the concrete as Dunn dropped on her from above. Acting on well honed instinct she grappled with Dunn, using the strength of her legs to kick him away.

She had begun to rise when Dunn found her gun and pistol whipped her. "My stories always end the same way," he gloated, aiming the weapon at her, "with someone else dying." The gun was knocked from Dunn's hand as Castle fired.

Dunn lunged for the gun only to have Jordan Shaw grind her heel into his hand. She smiled at Beckett. "I believe this is your collar."

Beckett pulled Dunn to his feet and snapped her cuffs on him, deliberately biting into the flesh of his wrists. "You have the right to remain silent, so shut the f**k up." She retrieved her gun and turned to Castle. "Hell of a shot!"

Castle's fists were clenched as he stared at the blood congealing on the side of Kate's head. "Believe me, I was aiming at something much lower."

Beckett handed Dunn off to uniforms in a white and blue and turned back to a shuddering Castle. She put a calming hand on his arm. "Babe, I've gotten the shakes after a take down too, but it's all over. Dunn will never see the light of day again anywhere but a prison yard."

"I know," Castle rasped. "I just..." Despite Kate's efforts to catch him, he fell heavily to the asphalt.

A/N Okay, I know I messed with a _Firefly_ Easter egg, but somehow I thought Castle might be mad enough at Dunn to go for maximum pain.


	28. Chapter 28

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 28

"Castle c'mon," Kate pleaded as he lay, eyes closed, on the dark pavement. She framed his face in her hands. His skin was sallow, a frightening shade she hadn't seen before. He was breathing and she quickly found a pulse, but he didn't respond to her voice. "Call the EMTs!" she yelled to a uniformed officer. "Castle, don't do this," she begged, smoothing the hair back from his face. Sitting cross legged on the road, she eased his head into her lap, holding it and rocking her body back and forth while she strained to hear the wail of an ambulance.

Two EMTs calmly and competently took Castle's vitals. Remarking that his blood pressure was low, they started an IV and prepared him for transport. Kate insisted on climbing into the ambulance beside him, pulling out her phone to call Dr. Morris one-handed, she clung to Castle with the other while siren blasting, the vehicle barged its way through New York City traffic.

Without benefit of siren, it took Morris more time to arrive in Emergency, a span that Kate found almost endless, but filled with the heart-wrenching task of calling Martha. Running in with his off-center gait, Morris spoke briefly to Kate, gathering what details he could of Castle's collapse before looking at looking at his patient. Kate paced the floor outside the curtained enclosure around Castle, waiting for Morris to finish his examination. "What the hell happened!" she demanded as he emerged.

"Mr. Castle had several strains of the parasite in his body," Morris explained. "One of them was less responsive to the medication. I believe that it has now mutated to become completely resistant. He's jaundiced, which means his liver is affected and there may be other organ involvement as well. And he's spiking a high fever as the organism is bursting his red blood cells. You saw that before when we were in Romania, before the virus cleared and he was able to start his treatment regimen. This is a serious relapse, probably made more so because his body is in a state of near exhaustion. He should have had complete rest when his symptoms began to flare. He might have been able to fight this."

"Damn f***ing Dunn, dammit Castle," Kate cursed under her breath."Can't you give him something else, Doctor?" Kate pressed. "Something that will work?"

Morris's lips formed a tight line as he shook his head. "There is nothing else. We've run the gamut of drugs, even experimental ones. There's only one course of treatment left to us. Since Castle's parasite is unique, I have to make my best guess as to whether to use it. Sometimes it's effective for similar types of diseases and sometimes it's not."

"What is it?"

"Complete blood exchange. There are risks, he could suffer an overload of iron or his lungs may be damaged, but there's no alternative. Have you called his family?"

"They're on their way," Kate confirmed, Martha and Alexis rushing up as if in summons to her words.

"Stupid! Stupid!" Martha exclaimed. "I knew something was going terribly wrong with him again, but Richard was too stubborn to admit it. That's why I didn't want to move out."

"He told me everything was fine too." Alexis added tearfully.

Morris softened uncharacteristically. "We'll do the best we can to make it that way," he assured her, before addressing Martha and Kate. "I don't have admitting privileges here, so I'm going have to get someone to sign off on what Mr. Castle needs, but it shouldn't take long. Columbia credentials have some degree of clout here. I may need some assistance from you, consent forms and such, but I'll get it done. They should move him to a room soon and you'll be able to sit with him while he undergoes the procedure."

* * *

Castle's eyes opened slowly as blood flowed though catheters in and out of his arms. He slowly focused on Kate. "What happened?"

"You were an idiot!" she replied."Serial killer or not, you should have let Morris know how bad things were getting."

"I just wanted to take care of you before I worried about myself," Castle protested. "After all you went through with me, I owed you that."

"Castle," Kate chided, "no one is keeping score."

"We'll just give you two a minute," Martha interjected, signaling Alexis to leave the room with her.

Castle wanted to reach out to Kate, but was frustrated by the restraints holding his arms in place. "Kate," he pleaded, "honestly, with Dunn out there after you, I couldn't think of anything else. I just kept seeing your apartment blowing up over and over; feeling my guts tying in knots not knowing if you were dead or alive. And even after I got you out of that hell hole, I was so afraid of losing you again, my focus was entirely on you. Kate by now you have to know I love you. You were all that mattered."

Kate sighed, reaching out to caress his face. "You jerk! Do you think I went to Romania for the scenery? God only knows why, but I love you too and don't want to lose you either. So this better work or I'll do Morris some serious damage."

Castle gazed down at the needles in his arms. "This was Morris' idea?"

"Yeah, and I guess he and Martha had to kick some serious ass in the bureaucracy around here to get it done, since you have an unknown organism with no officially sanctioned treatment." Kate shook her head. "Good thing you're rich, because your insurance company wanted no part of it. Martha had to call your business manager to get him to send the hospital a payment guarantee."

"Remind me to write something about that kind of garbage into my next book," Castle remarked in disgust. "Healthcare should be a right, not a privilege, whether anyone has money or not. This country is always bragging about being exceptional when what we are sometimes is exceptionally stupid. But speaking of exceptionally stupid, now that we've finally gotten the loving each other thing straight, what are we going to do about it?"

"What do you mean, Castle? We're sleeping together. Forced as it was, I've moved in with you. What else is there to do?"

"Kate, strange as it may seem, especially since I've bombed twice, I was talking about getting married. We've already been through the 'for better or for worse' and the 'in sickness or in health' part. All that's left is the 'for richer or for poorer' and even with whatever the hospital decides to gouge me for this, I think I'm in pretty good shape. Twenty-three best sellers will do that. I should be down on one knee with a ring in my hand, but you can pick out whatever you like when I get out of here."

Kate considered what Morris had told her about the uncertainty of the treatment, but couldn't pull her gaze from the hope in of Castle's eyes. She leaned over to place a soft kiss on his lips. "Sure Castle, but no Canal Street," she teased. "You better take me to a first class ring merchant. I'm not putting up with any green fingers."

Castle's mouth gave a lopsided quirk. "Don't worry," he assured her, "I've got a guy."


	29. Chapter 29

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 29

Martha peeked into the room to see Kate sitting quietly by the side of Castle's bed, and motioned Alexis to follow her through the doorway. "Ah, just in time, we have an announcement to make," Castle declared.

Putting a hand on Castle's arm, Kate hissed through gritted teeth, "Castle!"

Castle raised a puzzled eyebrow. "You didn't want to tell them?"

Kate drew a steadying breath. "I just wanted some time to get used to it myself, but it's all right Castle. Go ahead."

"Dad, what?" Alexis prompted.

"The incredible Miss Katherine Houghton Beckett has consented to be my bride," Castle announced.

"Well it's about damn time," Martha remarked. "You two have been dancing around each other from the moment she dragged you out of your book party. I'm glad you finally got some sense through those hard heads of yours."

"Yeah, congratulations," Alexis added, her voice not quite convincing. "Um, Dad, if you and Detective Beckett are all right I need to go home to study. I have a calculus exam in the morning."

"Alexis, I can always write you an excuse," Martha proposed, "I wrote great ones for your father: house fires, muggings."

"No Gram really, I don't want to get behind. You don't have to come. I can grab a cab."

Castle drew himself up as best he could with his arms restrained. "Not by yourself at this time of night young lady. It's okay, Mother. Take her home. I'll see you tomorrow."

Kate got up, guiding Martha toward the door. "It'll be fine. I'm staying and I'll call you if anything happens."

"Fine!" Martha agreed. "I'll call you in the morning."

Kate returned to Castle, pulling her chair almost flush with the bed. Castle shook his head. "I didn't expect that kind of reaction from Alexis. She likes you. She respects you. I thought she'd be happy for us."

"Give it time, Castle. You were away a long time, first with me at my place and then in Romania. She's Daddy's girl and she hasn't had you back that long. In her shoes I might react the same way. I might be a lot worse if my dad showed up with a woman," Kate mused. "It's been just the two of us for so long. Actually I'm not sure how he'll feel about this. He's heard about you, especially when you put out all that money to catch my mother's killer, but he's never even met you."

"I guess that's something else we'll have to take care of when I get out of here. What did Morris say about when they'll set me free, anyway?"

Kate carefully stroked Castle's arm. He said the treatment would take about six hours. But Castle, he also said there could be complications. There will probably be more tests before they let you go. He said he'd be back to talk to you about that in the morning. So I think we'll just have to see."

"Well I'm not going to waste any time," Castle decided. "First thing tomorrow I call my guy. He'll have his best baubles waiting."

* * *

The baubles waited for two days while tests were performed. Castle was administered a pill to capture excess iron and tests were repeated. While sternly appointing Kate to the task of making sure Castle didn't overdo, Morris approved a departure from the hospital. A cab dropped Beckett and Castle at a small shop on 47th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues. Castle smiled at a camera and pressed a buzzer for admittance through the locked door discreetly marked Gross Diamonds. Kate knew to keep her distance as Castle embraced the proprietor, a cheerful bearded man in a black felt hat, with curls in front of his ears. "Nahum, shalom, good to see you."

"And you my friend." Nahum inclined his head toward Kate. "And I assume this is the bride-to-be."

Understanding Nahum's religious practices restricted physical contact with women, Kate just nodded. "Kate Beckett."

Nahum scurried behind a locked glass case. Turning a key with a practiced hand he removed a tray covered in black velvet containing an array of sparkling gems. "Select your diamond," he instructed, "and I can have it put in any setting you desire."

Kate stared at the array of flashing gems. "I don't know. I can't go too big. I have to wear gloves at the crime scenes and..."

Nahum nodded knowingly and pulled out another tray. "These are radiant, emerald, pear shaped, and marquise cuts, flatter on top. Much less likely to poke through a glove. Many of my customers prefer them because they are also less likely to catch on fine fabrics, but still stunning."

Kate regarded the jewels thoughtfully before pointing to one of the smaller marquise cuts. "I like that." Kate pulled out her phone and pulled a picture to the screen. "Maybe a setting something like this? My Nona had a ring like this. She never took it off no matter what she was doing. She was buried in it."

Nahum studied the photo and slid a card across the counter for Kate to pick up. "An antique style setting, but I can have it made for you. Text me the photo."

Kate punched numbers into her phone before returning it to her jacket, and heard a blast of horns followed by crashing symbols emanate from the pocket of Nahum's pants. "Song of Companies," he explained. "A hymn of the Israeli Defense forces. It gets my attention." Nahum looked at the screen of his own cell. The picture looks good. You have slim fingers for a such stately woman. Your ring size is a seven, yes?"

"On the button," Kate agreed.

"The Black Card I have on file, Rick?" Nahum inquired. Castle nodded. Nahum clapped his hands together with a grin. "Then I will call you when it is ready. Much happiness!"

As the door to the shop clicked shut behind them, Castle signaled to a passing cab. "The precinct?"

"Yeah, you can drop me at the precinct," Kate responded, "but you're going home. I promised Morris, not to mention your mother and Alexis. Morris wasn't crazy about this trip, either. You go back to the loft and you stay there for at least a week. I know Alexis is going to be monitoring the door openings on the security system, so if you try to sneak out, you're not going to get away with it. And if she reports you to me, I might cuff you to the bed."

The corners of Castle's eyes crinkled as the creases in his cheeks deepened. "Ooh kinky! Promise?"

Kate sighed. "I can see that's no deterrent. How about if I ask Martha to cook for you - from scratch?"

"I thought the Constitution outlawed cruel and unusual punishment," Castle complained. "Alright, Detective Beckett, I surrender. I'm under house arrest. Satisfied?"

"For now, Castle." She stroked a fingertip over his lips. "But we can make some plans for upcoming events when I get back tonight."

Castle gulped as his pants tightened. "Kate, that's just not fair."

"Castle, I promise I'll make it worth the wait."

Castle took Kate's hand and kissed it before enfolding it in his own. "That's one promise I'll definitely hold you to."


	30. Chapter 30

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 30

In a strange way Castle wished he felt sick enough so he wouldn't care about anything else. But he didn't feel sick, just wrung out, and it wasn't enough to keep boredom at bay. He'd written two chapters of _Naked Heat_ , which just might send Gina into shock when she realized he was actually ahead of schedule. He certainly couldn't do that too often. She would come to expect it and then where would he be? He needed something else to fill the hours while Kate was at the precinct. Terra Quest served the purpose for a while, but the skill of the East Mountain Goblin King was daunting and Castle grew tired of defeat at the slash of a Falchining Sword.

He had two problems he was avoiding. One was Alexis' attitude toward his engagement to Kate. His daughter had never said one word against his fiancée, in fact she'd been too quiet. She just went about her business with as little interaction with Kate as she could. When she and Kate did talk, most of their conversation was centered on keeping a tight rein on him. Castle had seen behavior like this from Alexis before, especially toward the end of his marriage with Gina. They'd never fought in front of Alexis, but the tension in the air had clearly been palpable to his daughter nonetheless, and she had retreated. There was no tension between him and Kate. Something else was going on. He hoped that Kate was right that Alexis just needed some time, but he suspected there was more to it.

The easier problem was finding a way to get to know Jim Beckett. He'd considered formally asking for Kate's hand, but imagined the explosion if Kate perceived Castle imagined permission was needed for anything concerning her. He adored Kate's independence, but she could be like Alexis at two, taking half an hour to get ready to go to the park because she vehemently denied needing any help to get her jacket and snow boots on. If Kate thought Castle was inserting himself into her carefully guarded personal affairs, he'd be in the ninth ring of hell - the frozen one.

He decided the best thing to do would be to arrange a dinner at the loft. A restaurant would have been easier, but he doubted he could get the idea past either of his jailers. They wouldn't let him go to any great effort cooking it either and the last thing he wanted was for his Mother to volunteer. He decided to approach the matter as a detective, considering his clues. The first one was the watch belonging to her father that Beckett always wore. She'd spoken about how hard he took his wife's death and his five hard fought years of sobriety. Alcohol usually served as a great ice breaker, but dinner with a recovering alcoholic put it out of the question. Castle thought about the watch itself, analog, well crafted but with no special bells or whistles. Jim wouldn't be ostentatious, but he wouldn't be casual either. Castle considered Kate's love of baseball, which had clearly flowed from her father. What sparse knowledge Castle had about baseball had been garnered when his mother dated an occasional player. Castle had attended several fundraisers for the various causes mother's ball playing beaus had supported, and had learned about ballgames, but not the kind played in stadiums. Like almost everything else Castle engaged in, the dinner would require research. At least neither Kate nor Alexis objected to his conducting some, especially if they didn't know. Settling back in his office chair with his feet on the desk and his laptop across his thighs, Castle got to work.

Kate came back to the loft after her shift to find Castle dozing at his desk with his laptop open and his screen saver reminding him he should be writing. She closed the laptop, set it aside, and gently kissed his lips.

Castle drew a deep breath as his eyes opened. "Best wake-up call ever. How was your day slaving over a hot white board?"

Kate perched on Castle's desk. "No white board. No body. Just endless paperwork wrapping up Dunn's case. I had to rewrite everything for the feds and then I had to explain how a private citizen with no carry permit managed to shoot a gun out of our suspect's hand with my back-up weapon. Fortunately neither Montgomery nor Agent Shaw cared too much that I skimped on details."

"Oh, you should have called me," Castle chided. "I could have woven a wonderful tale of the gun coming loose from your holster while you grappled with a desperate killer. As your intrepid partner, I of course picked it up to come to your defense. I would have made both of us sound sexy and heroic. Come to think of it, we were both sexy and heroic, at least until I lost consciousness, but I would have made that sound romantic."

"Yeah, somehow I doubt that your thrilling and slightly fictionalized version would fit into a formal report, but next time I'll consider your offer. So how are you?"

"Well up until a couple of moments ago, lonely, but now fine. Alexis has a mathletes practice tonight but she put a quiche in the oven and from the aroma of things I'd say it was pretty close to..." A buzzer sounded from the kitchen. "Speaking of which..."

Kate slipped off the desk and extended a hand to pull Castle out of his chair. Castle automatically slipped on oven mitts and pulled the piepan-topped cookie sheet from the oven. Slipping the mitts off again, he inserted a toothpick. "Done to perfection," he announced, "in all it's bacony goodness. Collaborate on a salad?"

Kate was already pulling greens and tomatoes from the refrigerator. "You tear and wash, I'll slice," she ordered Castle, handing him a head of Romaine."

"Mmmm, not just good at bossing men around at the precinct. That was actually very wifely sounding," Castle observed, his eyebrows gyrating in alternating flicks, "and Nahum hasn't even sent the ring yet. Oh, don't get me wrong, I like the dominatrix side of you. You already wear the stilettos. Ooh, we have to replace the ones you lost in the fire, although I got a call from the team we hired. They have managed to save a lot of your stuff. You can go through it all this weekend." He laid the lettuce on the counter and traced patterns with a fingertip on the soft skin peeking out of the vee of her top. "But back to the subject at hand. You need a bustier. I'm partial to black lace up leather."

Kate propped her foot on the high seat of a counter stool and leaned enticingly toward Castle. "I could get a whip too. Maybe I could finally make you behave."

"Or maybe I'd aim to misbehave just to get your attention," Castle suggested.

Kate swung her foot back to rest on the floor. "Maybe later Castle. Morris said I shouldn't let you get too excited."

Castle pulled Kate tightly against the heat growing below his waist. "Lady Katherine, captivating captor and tantalizing torturer, it's way too late for that."

A key clicked and Alexis burst through the door of the loft. "Practice was called off and I thought I'd..." Her face twisted in anger as she got a clear view of her father and Kate. "Detective Beckett, Dad's getting sick is your fault! If he wasn't running around on a case with you, it never would have happened. And now I see I can't even trust you to help him get well. Well screw both of you! It's obvious that's what you're about to do anyway." Barely able to make out her path through the veil of moisture clouding her eyes, Alexis rushed up the stairs.


	31. Chapter 31

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 31

Castle pulled back from Kate. He started to run for the stairs but was restrained by her hand on his arm. "She's right you know. None of this would have happened if I'd made you hang back and had Ryan and Esposito open that crypt. And I shouldn't have been teasing you, not now. Morris told me to keep you calm and it's clear I did anything but."

"Kate, don't be ridiculous! You've never been able to make me hang back, not even when you cuffed me. Even I didn't believe Lockerby could do what he did until I saw his face start to burn. I just thought he was delusional. And to say you went above and beyond the call to make things right is an understatement. You supported me every step of the way no matter how rough things got. You didn't need to go to Romania with me. You didn't need to stay with me every minute while the bugs duked it out with the virus and you didn't need to take care of me afterward. I know Morris' instructions, but I love the swordplay as much as you do, maybe more. We both got carried away."

"Castle, still. Alexis isn't angry at you. She's just scared to death of losing you. Believe me I understand her feelings too well. I saw you on the brink and it nearly killed me. I'll go talk to her." An unsteady hand on the railing, Kate made her way to the bedrooms on the loft's upper level. She knocked softly on the tightly closed door of Alexis' sanctuary. "Alexis, please, we need to talk this out." Swiping at her eyes, Alexis grudgingly opened the door. "Look I've lost a parent. I understand how scared you were, how scared you still are."

Tears seared their way down Alexis' face. "No Detective, I don't think you do. You had two parents. You grew up with two parents. Your father is still around and you were already in college when you lost your mother, weren't you?"

Kate nodded mutely.

"Well my mother left when I was just a baby. Until Gram moved in just before Dad met you, even when he was married to Gina, the family was always the two of us. And now Gram's going to be with Chet. I love my mother, but she's never been there for me. Every so often she blows into town like some crazy aunt to take me shopping. But Dad, he's always been there, putting up with my friends on field trips, reading to me and cleaning up my puke when I was sick, checking under the bed for monsters. Everything was on his shoulders and he never complained. Whatever happened, I knew I could always count on him. Then you came along and he started running around like a cop. Every day I knew something terrible could happen to him, and it did. As much as he loves to pretend, he's a writer not a cop. He's not trained like you. He can't fight like you. He doesn't even have a gun. I know he loves you, and I want him to be happy, but I want him to be here, with me. I'm sorry, but that's the way I feel. Even if Dr. Morris says he's okay, working with you could still get him hurt again or killed. I couldn't handle that. "

As Alexis closed the door again, Kate's feet refused to move. Memories of Castle thrashing feverishly assaulted her mind. Visions of Castle with Dick Coonan's gun at his back tore through her consciousness. She didn't think she could handle it either. Kate dragged herself the few feet to Martha's empty room and closing the door behind her, slid down the wall until she huddled on the floor, knees drawn protectively against her chest.

Castle couldn't make out the words, but he could hear Alexis' voice. Then he heard nothing, but Kate didn't return. The seconds slowly ticked past until he could no longer stand it. He found Kate, face wet in misery, and dropped to the floor beside her. He gently raised her face to his. "Kate?"

"She's right, Castle. Every moment we work together could be the moment that ends your life. I can't let you put yourself on the line like that anymore."

"Kate, you didn't let me. You did everything you could to stop me. I signed on for it with the every piece of paper the City of New York's lawyers could produce."

Kate's lower lip disappeared into her mouth as she closed her eyes against the impending flood. "Castle, you may have signed on, but Alexis didn't."

Castle gently cradled her face in his hands. "Kate look, I could be crossing the street and get mowed down by a crazy cabbie. Or I could get cancer or heart disease. I don't know who my father was. Maybe I have some deadly genetic time bomb. Some of my fans are a few cards short of a deck. One of them might actually decide to reenact a scene from one of my books with me as the victim. There's no assurance of safety in this world, especially not in this city. We've seen people killed for just buying the wrong purse. Working with you hasn't just kickstarted my writing, it's kickstarted my life and I wouldn't change a minute of it. We will find a way to work this out. When Morris gives me the all clear, I'll stay behind the yellow lines. I'll wear my vest all the time or I'll hang back in the precinct - whatever it takes to convince you and Alexis that I'm not going to disappear in a puff of smoke. But Kate, if I let Alexis grow up letting fear rule her life, if I let it rule ours, that's not living. It's just marking time until the real final curtain falls." Supporting himself on the door frame, Castle got to his feet and extended a hand to Kate. "C'mon, let's go finish the salad and eat the quiche. If I skip a meal it'll just be one more thing for Alexis to be upset about."

Kate picked at the savory egg concoction trying unsuccessfully to get her stomach to accept the contents of her fork. Even with the calming influence of a beaujolais, allowed even under Morris' strictures, Castle wasn't doing much better. Finally they gave up, scraping and washing the plates. "Castle, what are we going to do?" Kate asked as she hung up a damp dishtowel.

"You are going to go to the precinct tomorrow and be the best homicide detective in the city. I'm going to call Dr. Morris and make an appointment for myself and for Alexis. That professional detachment of his may be just what she needs to convince her that I may be a little worse for wear but I'm definitely not broken."

"And what about now?" she wondered.

Castle opened his arms, pulling her to him until her head rested under the curve of his chin. "We may not be able to set the bed on fire - yet - but there's nothing like a good cuddle."

Hand in hand they made their way to the bedroom.


	32. Chapter 32

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 32

Kate felt the comforting warmth of Castle's skin against her cheek as she pillowed her head on his chest. His head propped on his hand, he stared at the ceiling, not even close to sleep. "The idea is for you to get some rest, Babe," Kate murmured softly. "Still thinking about Alexis?"

Castle sought his own comfort, letting the silken strands of her hair caress his fingers. "Yeah, but also about your father."

"My father? Why?"

"I need to make a good impression. I thought we might have a get-acquainted dinner. I was researching a baseball theme, but it put me to sleep."

"Shame it's not doing that now. But Castle, all you had to do was ask me. My father's interested in a lot of things besides baseball. He loves old vinyl." Kate closed her eyes in smoky recollection. "That's how I learned about jazz."

"Really? I got to know Wynton Marsalis when we were working on an autism benefit. I could invite him over."

Kate pushed herself up, rolling he eyes. "Castle, I think that might be a bit much. How about some Coltrane as background music for dinner. And you should keep it simple. Dad's not into fancy cuisine. More like meat and potatoes."

"Let me guess. Apple pie for dessert."

Kate traced a pattern on Castle's chest. "Cherry actually. We have that in common too."

"But I'm guessing no two shots of sugar-free vanilla in his coffee."

Kate nodded. "He likes it black. So when were you proposing to have this little soiree?"

"Well I'll have to cool Alexis down first and have mother bring Chet. He should keep her busy enough to keep her out of the kitchen. Maybe next week. Morris should have loosed my shackles by then and I'll make sure Alexis is clear that he did. With luck I can get her to bake the pie. She's pretty good at it, although she still has a few things to learn about lattice work."

"You really are a foodie aren't you Castle?"

"Now that I'm not drinking blood anymore, yes. Food is one of the great sensual pleasures in life - and one in which you can indulge in public. You're smiling. What?"

"Nothing. I just had a friend like that at Stuy. She studied hospitality at Cornell. I was just wondering what happened to her."

"Sounds like a fun friend to have. Who knows? Maybe she can cater our wedding. You should look her up."

Kate snuggled in thoughtfully. "Yeah, I think I'll do that. I haven't just hung with anyone outside law enforcement in a long time. It might be nice."

Castle closed his eyes and drew Kate close. So she didn't think of him as being outside law enforcement. That was good to know.

* * *

Morris seemed distracted and his desk was piled even higher than usual. "Sorry I only have a few minutes," he apologized to Castle and Alexis. "There's a new strain of flu out there that didn't make it into this year's vaccine and we're formulating strategies to combat it. But I looked at your latest test results Mr. Castle and it would appear that we've finally beaten your personal plasmodium into submission. There's no sign of the virus either. Your iron looks good and your lungs are clear. I'll be putting your case into a paper once we get get a handle on this newest outbreak. I imagine you'll be feeling much stronger shortly I see no reason why you shouldn't be able to pursue any activity you feel up to."

Castle gave Alexis a significant look, but she didn't look pleased. "Alright, out with it," he demanded as they headed for the nearest spot to hail a cab.

"So now you're free to go running around with Detective Beckett again," Alexis declared angrily. "Don't expect me to be happy that you could be in sights of some deranged ki..."

Castle pushed Alexis to the ground as sharp cracks echoed across the health campus. "Stay down," he ordered with one hand on her head while he pulled out his phone.

"Beckett picked up on the first ring, recoiling in horror at the sound coming through her cell. "Castle, are you all right? Where are you? Are those gunshots?"

"In order: yes so far, flat on the pavement near the School of Public Health with Alexis, and yes, but I'm not sure where they're coming from. I think it might be the Neurological Institute."

"Castle, you just keep on hugging the ground. Units from the 26th should be there first but I'm on my way."

Castle shoved his phone back in his pocket and looked around as best he could while still holding onto Alexis. It was impossible to spot the shooter, but he did see a victim. A young woman in a long skirt and heavy coat with a black scarf covering her head lay on the ground not far away, blood staining the white surface of the concrete. "Alexis, a woman's hurt. I need to see what I can do for her."

"Dad!" Alexis called fearfully as Castle began to crawl across the ground to the woman.

Castle could see two wounds: one on her shoulder and another bleeding more profusely on her side. He pulled out his handkerchief pressed it to the bloodier wound. "Alexis, baby, I need you to come here and help. I can't do this by myself."

Alexis could already see blood seeping between her father's fingers. Trembling, she pulled herself along the ground, handing her father her own scarf to staunch the flow that had already overwhelmed his scrap of colorful fabric and pressing her palm to the woman's shoulder.

Sirens began to howl in the distance, pitch rising as they approached. Castle heard a heavy rumble he hoped was an ESU van. It seemed an eternity before an armed and armored squad materialized and its members dispatched to find the shooter. Blue and whites ringed the area, keeping anyone else from entering the field of fire. EMTs stood as in starting blocks, ready to render aid the moment the all clear was given. It's alright," Alexis soothed as the woman moaned and prayed weakly. "Help will be here any second. You're going to be fine."

A final shot cut through the air. Walkie talkies chirped and EMT's approached at a full run. Strong, sure hands took over and as soon as it was clear that Castle and Alexis were uninjured, they were asked to move back so the EMT's could stabilize their patient. Castle gazed at the lines of blue and whites, spotting Beckett's car pull up beside them.

Beckett sprang from her unit, spotting Castle and Alexis immediately, her eyes widening at their blood splattered clothes. "Are you hit?" she yelled as she ran straight at Castle.

"Not our blood. We're fine." Castle assured her as she launched herself into his arms.

"Oh, thank God! You'll have to give your statements, but let's get you to the car." Kate led the way as Castle, arm tightly around Alexis, followed. Kate urged them in. "I want to go talk to CSU. I'll be right back."

"Are you okay Baby?" Castle asked as Alexis clung to his hand in the back seat of Kate's car.

"Dad, I think I am and I think I understand now. You're not working with Detective Beckett because you're indulging yourself in some grand game of cosplay. You want to help. You need to. When I saw that woman bleeding that was all I could think about too."

"When I first started it was for the rush," Castle confessed "and also because besides being gorgeous, Kate is the most remarkable woman I've ever met and I couldn't stand to walk away from her. It was fun pretending to be a cop. But after a time I felt exactly what you described. I did need to help. Maybe my books entertain or even get some people through hard times. My fans tell me they do. But working with Kate, that's making a difference I can feel in my bones. I promise you I will try my best to stay safe, but I need to keep doing what I'm doing."

Alexis drew a tremulous breath. "I get it Dad. It's still going to give me nightmares, but I get it."

Kate climbed back behind the wheel. "Everything alright?"

Castle and Alexis nodded in synchrony.

"The shooter is dead." Kate reported. "An ESU sniper took him out. He was a patient at the Neurological Institute. He had a manifesto on him. He got it into his head that Muslims were responsible for all the world's ills and declared a death sentence on all of them. They don't know about the others yet; it's looks like the victim you were with is going to make it.

"I'm glad she is, but the whole thing is really sad and also ironic," Alexis offered.

"Why ironic, sweetie?" Castle inquired.

"I recognized what the woman who was shot was praying, because some of the Jewish friends I've gone camping with prayed it before they went to sleep. It was the Shema. She isn't covered up like that because she's a Muslim. She's an orthodox Jew. He didn't even know who he was shooting. I guess you can just never tell what some crazy person is going to do. That's why the world needs you, Detective Beckett - and Dad."


	33. Chapter 33

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 33

Castle surveyed the carefully set table. His usual style for special occasions usually involved shimmering crystal and fancifully folded cloth napkins. This case was different. The napkins were still cloth but folded in simple rectangles. There was no crystal, only glass tumblers for water or iced tea. The flatware was stainless steel and the plates heavy stoneware. His aim was to create an air of welcome but not of formality. He hoped he had achieved it. A savory aroma rose from a beef roast cooked to falling-off-the-bone tenderness, mixing with the cherry sweetness from Alexis' pie. Everything was ready, except for the presence of Kate, who had been trapped at the precinct going over a report with Captain Montgomery.

It would be underhanded, but Castle decided that desperate times called for desperate measures. He'd picked up the phone to call Evelyn Montgomery in hopes that she could lure her husband home, when he heard Kate's key in the lock. Her engagement ring flashing from her finger, she carried a bag from a store specializing in vintage vinyl. Pulling out an album, she held it up for Castle to see. "I got an alert they got in Coltrane by Coltrane, 1962. Dad will love this. I'm going to put it on the turntable."

"Great, now all we need is Mother and Chet, and of course your father."

Chet, honking like a goose at Martha's latest theater story, ushered Martha in two minutes later. Forewarned concerning the simplicity of the evening, Martha had dressed in what she considered subtler tones, but still created a blaze of brilliant color in the room. Chet's suit was expertly tailored, but of simple lines, a muted complement to Martha's panache.

Castle smilingly made small talk about the latest Broadway play but wiped sweaty palms against his pants. It seemed ridiculous. He'd met two prior fathers-in-law and he'd never before been close to this nervous. Maybe it was just that Kate mattered so much more than either Meredith or Gina had. Neither one of them had ever evoked the longing Kate did, or driven him as crazy.

Finally the buzzer sounded. Castle and Jim Beckett eyed each other. Given Kate's height, Castle had expected Jim Beckett to be taller, but the senior Beckett was no less intimidating for the lack of inches. Though reserved, Kate's father wasn't hostile, something Castle comforted himself was good start. Martha injected herself, gushing about dinner just being ready and the joy of an expanding family. Alexis, who had been doing some last minute homework in her room, came down and introduced herself.

Carefully placing needle at the edge of the grooves of the record, Kate started the music and Castle pulled in a deep breath. "Well, shall we sit?"

"So Jim," Martha inquired after Castle had loaded the plates, "I understand you're an attorney. Do you have an interesting case?"

Jim Beckett carefully swallowed before replying. "I do. I have a class action suit that's keeping me pretty busy. Multiple products a local baking company claimed to be gluten-free were found to contain gluten contamination. A number of consumers, especially children with celiac disease have been adversely affected."

Chet's gaunt face reddened. "You're not talking about Palico, are you?"

"I am," Jim confirmed. "We've established that a number of assays Palico claimed to have performed, in fact never were. The results were falsified. The whole sordid situation came out when some of the parents saw their kids getting sick and started using test strips on everything they ate. Palico foods consistently failed the test."

Chet threw down his napkin and rose from the table. "Now that is just a bunch of lies. I own Palico and everything we put out is highly scrutinized and totally gluten free. You lawyers see someone making an honest profit and you just have to attack." He angrily retrieved his coat and Martha's from the guest closet. "Martha, we're leaving."

Martha but a hand on her boyfriend's arm. "Darling, I'm sure this is just an honest misunderstanding. Come back to the table. I happen to know Alexis slaved all day over dessert."

Chet turned to Alexis. "Well, I'm sorry young lady, but I can't share a table with the man who's trying to ruin me." He turned back to Martha. "Are you coming?"

"No!" Martha declared. "Your behavior is disgraceful! Jim is going to be part of my family, something about which you don't seem to care. I'm staying."

"Fine!" Chet retorted. "I'll have the housekeeper pack up your things and send them here. Enjoy your dessert!" He strode out of the loft, dropping Martha's coat on the floor and slamming the door behind him.

Castle opened his arms and Martha fell into them as Coltrane's saxophone wailed in mournful response to Chet's departure. "Oh Richard, what just happened?"

Castle held Martha, her head heavy against his shoulder. "I'm so sorry Mother."

Martha lifted her head and pulled away. "Well maybe it's all for the best. If what Jim says is true, what do I want with some conniving capitalist who puts profit ahead of the health of children? There are plenty of men out there who'll appreciate my unique flair. I don't need a high school has been. My graydar is reactivating as of now."

Alexis threw her arms around Martha's neck. "Gram, it's great to have you back."

Jim Beckett coughed. "I think I should be going."

Martha drew herself up to full diva stance. "Jim, don't you dare! We have Alexis' beautiful pie and Richard's divine coffee. Then we need to discuss when you'll be walking Katherine down the aisle."

Kate choked. "Martha, Castle and I just got engaged. We haven't even talked about a date yet."

Martha swept a dismissive hand through the air. "Then it's high time you should. Weddings don't just happen overnight you know. They take effort and planning. You need a venue, and invitations, and flowers and oh my goodness, the guest list. And of course you will need a dress."

"No I won't," Kate interrupted. "I'm going to wear my mother's dress. Don't you have it in storage, Dad?"

Jim nodded solemnly. "Just waiting for you Katie, whenever you want it."

Martha clasped her hands together. "Well that's wonderful, but we still have everything else to consider, so Alexis darling, you serve your creation, Richard pour the coffee, I'll get my pad, and we'll get to it."

Castle and Jim caught each others eyes with a look of grudging male acceptance.

Kate was grateful that as old school as her father sometimes was, he carried his calendar on his phone, but with the inclusion of Alexis in the mix, finding a date that would work for five people was more difficult than Kate had ever imagined. They finally settled on late May, when Alexis would be out of school, Castle had no book signings, Jim had fewer professional commitments and Kate knew both Ryan and Esposito would be available to pick up her workload. Martha suggested several venues, including a newly rehabbed theater. Kate found the idea grandiose for her taste and she could tell her father did as well. She suggested putting off the discussion of a venue until the size of the guest list had been determined. Finally the last cup of coffee was poured and Jim Beckett bid everyone a grateful and weary good night.

Castle climbed into bed beside Kate. "Mother left so many of her things here. I had a feeling she was just looking for an excuse to come back. I guess she found one. I'm sorry she pushed the wedding planning on you and your father that way. It's pretty obvious neither one of you was prepared to talk about it. I wasn't either."

Kate snuggled into Castle's side. "It's all right. In a strange way I think everything that happened tonight made my father feel part of the family. It made me feel more that way too. Castle, I think this is all going to work out."

Castle pulled her closer. "I know it will."


	34. Chapter 34

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 34

Castle and Kate stared at each other over the top of the legal pads containing their guest lists. Castle sighed, throwing his compilation on the coffee table. "This is not working. Between your list, my list, Mother's, and whomever your father decides to add, we're going to need Yankee Stadium."

"My father would enjoy that," Kate teased.

"That's not the point," Castle retorted in frustration. "What should have been an intimate meaningful ceremony has turned into New Year's Eve in Times Square. It's completely out of control."

Kate put her pad down next to his and worked at the kinks in her fingers. "I know Castle, but what do you want to do about it?"

"I know I suggested picking a venue based on the guest list, but what if we do it the other way around? We could pick someplace small and use it as an excuse to slash our numbers."

"You know, we may have some help with that. Remember my foodie friend from Stuy I told you about. I gave her a call. She has a restaurant, Q3. She also caters. She knows about weddings and she invited us to have dinner."

Castle sprang from the couch, half dancing. "Q3, are you kidding? I can't even get a reservation there! When are we going?"

Kate was impressed by his enthusiasm. "How about tomorrow night?"

* * *

Kate sleepily stuck her hand out to her chirping cell and read the text on the screen. Castle pulled himself up beside her. "What is it?"

"Body. That's weird, Castle."

"I thought you liked the weird ones. What?"

"We were talking about this last night. The body's at Q3."

Beckett and Castle arrived to find Perlmutter ringing an icy corpse with orange cones. A partially shattered hand was detached from the corpse. Castle looked on curiously. "What happened? Did it break?" Castle bent over the cones for a better view. "Hey! Balthazar Wolf, bad boy of _Kitchen Wars_! Now I'll never get to taste his fois gras sandwich."

Perlmutter looked up in annoyance. "Watch out Castle. The murder weapon was liquid nitrogen, capable of making almost anything brittle. If you disturb my body, it won't be the only thing that's broken."

Castle continued to stare in fascination. "Yes, I saw liquid nitrogen at at demonstration at Alexis' school. But the teacher stuck her finger in it and she was fine."

Mr. Castle," Perlmutter explained impatiently, "the heat of a finger can create an insulating layer of nitrogen gas that temporarily prevents freezing. But this restaurant has its own tank of liquid nitrogen. Our killer used enough to overcome that effect." Perlmutter pointed to a large container encased in silvered tape. "Whoever it was probably used that whole Dewer. Even then, our murderer got lucky."

"Which is more than we can say for Wolf." Castle noted.

"Castle, what is _Kitchen Wars_ and who was Balthazar Wolf?" Beckett demanded.

"Kate, just the best cooking competition on TV! I have a bunch of episodes on the DVR. You should watch. That's how I learned to make a perfect wine reduction."

"Our victim?" Beckett prompted.

"Oh yeah. There's always one arrogant know-it-all on those shows. Usually they get knocked off in the early rounds. That was Wolf, except that he really did know-it-all. He walked away with the win, a hundred thousand dollars. The other chefs hated him for it. Could be one of them wanted to consign him to the big chill."

Ryan walked up, notebook in hand. "Beckett, the owner has arrived. She says she knows you. Do you want to take her statement?"

"Yeah, c'mon Castle. We'll check on the science project later."

Blonde and stunning, Madison Queller waited restlessly at a table in the dining room. Relief softened the lines of her mouth when she saw Kate. "Becks! This wasn't the way I pictured getting together. So is this your new fiancé?"

Castle extended a hand. "Richard Castle."

"Maddie, I'm sorry," Beckett interrupted, "but I need to get as much information from you as I can, as soon as I can. With a murder, the first hours are critical. So our victim, Balthazar Wolf was your chef?"

"Not just my chef, my partner. I met him when I was a guest judge on _Kitchen Wars_. After he won, he invested his winnings in Q3. I built the whole restaurant around his reputation. I'm surprised the girl who could spend hours watching _Saved By the Bell_ reruns hasn't heard of him. He was just the kind of bad boy you used to get a crush on." Maddy smiled at Castle. "Although it looks like you might have done better."

Castle wiggled his eyebrows. "Hours watching _Saved By the Bell_ reruns? What other juicy details don't I know about you, Kate?"

Beckett could feel heat in her cheeks. "Can we just worry about the case now, Castle? Juicy details later."

"I'll hold you to that," Castle responded.

Beckett gained a beat by tucking her hair behind her ear. "Maddie, do you know of anyone who might have been here last night with Wolf?"

"I might be able to tell by checking the kitchen," Maddie suggested and Beckett gestured Maddie back to the murder scene. Maddie pointed to a pot and two bowls in the sink. "That's popcorn soup. It's a specialty of Juan Costa, our line cook. He could have been here."

Kate signaled to Esposito, who was taking statements from the kitchen staff. "Track down a Juan Costa."

* * *

Beckett worked on the preliminary paperwork for the case while Castle occupied the chair beside her desk, researching recipes for popcorn soup. Montgomery stuck his head out his office and beckoned her in. "Kate, I can't have you working this case."

"Why?" Beckett asked.

"You're friends with Madison Queller. She's a suspect. Ryan just dug up some information on her. She had a business insurance policy on your victim. With his death, she owns the restaurant free and clear. That's millions of dollars worth of motive."

"But we already established her alibi," Beckett protested. "She was at a charity event at the time of death. Q3 provided the food and she was supervising."

"She still could have paid someone to do it," Montgomery pointed out.

"Sir, do I have to stay away from her entirely? She is supposed to help Castle and me with our wedding plans."

Montgomery smiled indulgently and shook his head. "You can talk about all the canapes and seating plans you want, Kate, but until she's cleared, if she's cleared, no mention of anything having to do with the case."

"Yes sir," Beckett agreed.

"What's wrong?" Castle asked, reading the scowl on Beckett's face as she returned to her desk.

"Montgomery took me off the case, at least for now, because of my relationship with Maddie. All I'm allowed to talk to her about is the wedding. Looks like I'm done for the day."

"So you're free for the evening?" Castle questioned.

"Yeah," Kate responded. "Why? Did you have something in mind, Castle?"

"Yeah, since Q3 is closed down, how about if we take Maddie to dinner? I can get us into Rocco Despirito's place. We could get ideas from both of them."

"You know Castle, that's not a bad idea at all. If Maddie is willing, we're on."


	35. Chapter 35

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 35

"Castle I ought to punch you in the nose!" Rocco complained as he came to the table with tiny plates of amuse-bouches.

Kate's cops' instincts were immediately triggered, reaching for a gun, absent under a body hugging gown Castle had insisted on buying her to replace one destroyed by Scott Dunn's blast. "Are you threatening my fiancé?"

Rocco put up a protective hand. "Whoa, Detective Beckett! I'm a cooker not a fighter.

Eyes still narrowed in suspicion, Kate nodded, pulling her hand away from an imaginary holster.

"It was just a joke," Rocco explained hastily. "I just meant that Derrick Storm was my favorite character and I was bummed that Rick killed him off. I like Nikki Heat too," he hurriedly added.

Castle reached for Kate's hand. "I needed to move on and it was the best move ever! But speaking of fiancés, Kate and I have been trying to figure out a wedding venue - a small venue. Any ideas from the master chef?"

Rocco's mild face scrunched in thought. "You know, I might have one. There's a place where I catered a wedding for a couple of dancers from one of those competition shows. There were a bunch of stars there, former contestants, and they wanted to keep the whole thing away from the papparazzi. It's pretty secluded, on a country estate in Riverdale that was built in the 1800's. There's a converted carriage house with all the amenities, modern kitchen, restrooms, but it maintains the period ambiance. The grounds are gorgeous, with a view of the river and the house accommodates about a hundred people."

"I know the place," Maddie interjected. "I did an anniversary party there for a couple who'd been married sixty years. It is lovely. You could do the wedding outside and still be able to move it in if it rains."

Kate and Castle looked at each other grinning with a simultaneous utterance of, "Sound's perfect!"

Maddie stared at them wide-eyed. "You two really are in synch." She pulled out her cell phone. "Becks, I'm texting you their contact info."

"That deserves a toast," Rocco offered, "Champagne?"

"Absolutely," Castle agreed. "Just being able to pare the list down below a hundred calls for a drink. With all the other writers we'll have to cut, it almost ensures I won't get nominated for a Poe award this year. But so worth it!"

Rocco returned with a Charles Heidsieck Vintage 2000 along with a waiter bearing the first items on a special tasting menu. Castle surveyed the label as Rocco filled sparkling flutes. "Nice."

Maddie raised her glass. "To small but perfect weddings."

Crystal chimed as Kate and Castle touched their glasses in emphatic agreement.

Maddie closed her eyes in ecstasy as she savored the last bite of her chocolate cassata. Thank you, Rick. This was wonderful. Now if you two need any kind of help, you call me. Rebel Becks getting married! I can't wait. But I also have to go. I start interviewing new chefs in the morning. It's going to be very hard to fill Wolf's shoes."

Castle rose and pulled out Maddie's chair and then Kate's. "Can I get you a cab?"

Maddie smiled in sudden remembrance. "Actually I think Becks could do that better. As I recall, no cabbie could resist that piercing whistle of hers - or her legs."

"You just can't stop giving my secrets away, can you?" Kate rebuked, not quite suppressing a smile. "Okay, I'll whistle you up a taxi, but this dress covers my legs."

"Yeah," Castle agreed. "I'll have to rethink that when I buy you the next one. I wonder when micro skirts are coming back. Things from the sixties are reappearing all the time."

Beckett rolled her eyes, but successfully hailed the first cab that passed by the restaurant. "Should I get another one for us?" Castle asked after Maddie was on her way.

"Castle if you don't mind, I think I'd like to walk off Rocco's creations for a while."

Castle offered her his arm. "Walking under the stars with the woman of my dreams, what's to mind?" Castle gazed at the tiny lines between her brows. "But there's something on your mind. What's going on, Kate?"

"I hate being off the case, Castle. Ryan and Espo are good, but I'm better. I'd really like to get into this, if for nothing else than to get rid of the cloud hanging over Maddie."

Castle used a fingertip to push back a strand of hair that had blown in her face in the breeze of the passing cars. "I'm surprised it took you this long to bring it up. So what do you want to do? Obviously nothing Montgomery will find out about."

The lines on Kate's forehead deepened. "Actually I was hoping that you'd have some ideas."

Castle thought for a moment as they continued down the sidewalk. "Well Wolf was famous - ish. That means that people would want to take pictures of him. They'd post them or tweet them. We could do an image search, see where he was, maybe get an idea of what he was doing. There were a lot of women fans who thought he was hot. Some of them probably blogged about him. We can look for that too. If we're really lucky, maybe he had a semi-stalker, ooh maybe he was killed by a stalker."

Kate shook her head. "It's unlikely, Castle. Ryan and Espo interviewed all the Q3 staff. If someone had seen a stalker hanging around, they would have heard about it. But I love your idea about images and blogs." She slipped her arm from Castle's elbow. "Let's go back to the loft and get started."

Sweeping the tips of his fingers up from the center of his brow and extending his arm, Castle bowed at the waist. "Your wish is my command." The wave of his credit card drew a cab almost as fast as her whistle did.

* * *

Beckett examined a group of images on the big screen in Castle's office. "Castle, these are all of Wolf sitting in the same diner at during the same two hour span on different days. He's just drinking coffee and looking out the window. This place is nowhere near his apartment or Q3. What would he be doing there?"

Castle used his fingers to expand an image. "Look at the expression on his face. It's - longing, like there's something on the other side of that window that he wants but can't have. A woman, maybe?"

"What brings you to that conclusion, Castle?"

"That's the way I used to look at you - when you weren't looking. Espo caught me a couple of times. He accused me of being more interested in you than I was in doing research for my books."

Kate turned to Castle, reaching up to put her arms around his neck. "Was he right?"

Castle reached around her to cup the warm curve beneath her dress and pulled her against his rising heat. "No doubt about it, the man's an excellent detective." Castle lowered his lips to Kate's. "Wolf's wishes might have gone unfulfilled, but everything I want is right here."


	36. Chapter 36

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 36

"Castle if I have any more coffee I won't sleep for the next week," Beckett complained after the waitress had refilled her cup for the fourth time.

Castle raised an eyebrow suggestively. "I know how you can pass the time."

"Castle, I'm serious. We've been here for hours and all we've seen out that window is people picking out clothes in the boutique across the street. Why would Wolf have been watching that?"

"Maybe," Castle suggested, using a fingertip to pick up the last of the powdered sugar left over from a doughnut, "because it's not a what, it's a who. There's been one constant the whole time, the salesgirl who's been helping them."

"You may be right Castle." Beckett picked up her phone and snapped a picture. "Maybe Espo and Ryan know who she is." Beckett snapped several more shots as the woman moved. "We can get a good look at these on your screen, but I have a suspicion. Let's get out of here."

"Yeah," Castle agreed pushing away his cup, "right after I pee."

Beckett laughed. "Good idea. I'll meet you."

* * *

"Is that from Ryan and Esposito?" Castle asked as Beckett read a text.

"Uh huh, she's Cecily Burkett, the girlfriend of Wolf's best friend and foster brother, David Nicolaides."

"Wow! And Wolf was looking at her like that. In love with his best friend's girl. That's almost a trope, or a Rick Springfield song. Hmm, David's girl. It scans."

Kate pulled Rick toward the screen as she enlarged several pictures. Babe, I think there may be even more to it than that. You see the side views. Cecily has a little tummy, but she doesn't have any extra weight anywhere else. Men are built like that all the time, especially if they've been into the beer and not enough into the gym. But women, we usually gain elsewhere, except..."

"For a baby bump," Castle finished. "So Wolf is gazing at his best friend's pregnant girlfriend. Do you think...?"

"That the baby might be Wolf's? It seems like a good possibility. Maybe if we trace Wolf's movements through those blogs you were talking about, we can figure it out." Beckett's phone chimed again. "Oh, Maddie sent us a picture of - hey, it's a wedding cake."

"Jumping the gun a little, isn't it?" Castle asked.

"It's not for us." Beckett held up the picture for Castle to see. "But look, it is gorgeous." Maddie says Wolf made it, but she has no paperwork about who it was for. She says Spike the pastry chef who helped him with it doesn't know either and that it wasn't like Wolf. He was scrupulous about keeping records."

Castle put out a hand for the phone. "Let me see that picture again." Castle studied the elegantly crafted confection. "Kate, I don't think this is a wedding cake. The shape is all wrong. There's no bride and groom, no flowers, no kitchy mottos. It's a pillow with a heart on top like someone is offering their love. I think it's a proposal. We need to have a look at that cake."

Kate pressed her lips together doubtfully."Montgomery's not going to like it if we go to see Maddie about the case."

"So who says it's about the case? We're planning a wedding and we're going to see a cake, right? C'mon Kate," Castle cajoled.

* * *

Maddie indicated the cake inside the commercial refrigerator and Castle pulled it out and put it on a nearby work station. "Did you hear something rattle?" he asked. "It's too heavy to be hollow."

Maddie pointed to the red heart on top. "That couldn't be solid or it would sink into the cake. There's a seam. That's a strange way to do it. Usually if you want something hollow like that, you make it out of blown sugar. Wolf had the skills to do that. But this looks like he did each half in a mold and then put them together."

"Could there be something inside?" Castle queried.

"It's possible," Maddie replied. "We could probably separate the halves. It looks like they were stuck together with royal frosting."

"Ooh, I know that stuff!" Castle exclaimed. "It's tough! I used it to build a gingerbread house for Alexis - or I tried to. The shutters sagged and all the gum drops fell off. I told Alexis Hansel and Gretel had been nibbling on it. She didn't buy it."

"It is tricky to use," Maddie agreed, smothering a laugh. "You have to get the recipe exact. But it doesn't look like Wolf had any trouble." She pulled on a pair of thin vinyl gloves from a nearby dispenser and reached for the heart. "With any luck..." Gingerly plucking the heart from the cake, she carefully pulled the halves apart. A ring clinked against the stainless steel surface of the work table.

Castle picked it up, examining it with a practiced eye. "Nice. About fifteen thousand dollars nice. The man was seriously smitten."

Maddie pointed to the jewel on Beckett's finger. "It must take one to know one."

Putting an arm around Kate's waist, he drew her close. "You'll get no argument from me about that. So maybe I understand how Wolf felt."

Beckett turned toward Castle to continue the thought. "He's in love with his best friend's girlfriend. She's pregnant. He's going to propose. So who would that seriously piss off?"

"The best friend!" they said together.

"You two are really adorable," Maddie grinned.

* * *

Allowing that a woman's touch could be helpful, and noting that Maddie's financials had turned up no signs that she'd hired a hit man, Montgomery permitted Beckett to sit in while Esposito and Ryan questioned Cecily Burkett. While first denying her pregnancy, she admitted it when faced with phone records of her calls to an obstetrician. Under Beckett's questioning she also admitted that the baby was Wolf's, who had offered comfort when Cecily and David were going through a rough time. She insisted that David didn't know, but conceded that he might have done the math. To her horror she remembered that David had given her a sleeping pill the night Wolf was killed and she didn't really know where he'd been. Tearfully, she gave consent for a search of the apartment she and David shared.

* * *

"Beckett, look at this!" Castle called, using gloved hands to pull a pair of shoes out of David's closet. "See the soles are all cracked, as if he walked in them after stepping in liquid nitrogen."

"And look at these," Esposito added, pulling out a copy of an ultrasound scan and a photo that were stuffed in the back of David's underwear drawer. "The date and the number of weeks is on here. He definitely could have figured that baby wasn't his. And this is a picture of the three of them together. You can see the way Wolf is looking at Cecily. The man knew!"

"Ah, the classic story of the cuckolded man slaying his woman's lover," Castle sighed. "Old as time but forever new - especially the liquid nitrogen part."

"I have a unit on the diner David owns," Beckett announced, "I'll have them pick him up."

"Perfect timing!" Castle declared.

"Why?" Beckett asked.

"I had Maddie send me the contact info for the venue in Riverdale too. We have an appointment tonight."


	37. Chapter 37

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 37

A chilling breeze blew off the river, penetrating Kate's coat and threatening to chap lips already tender from the nervous application of her teeth. She leaned into the comforting heat radiating from Castle's side. "If we hold it outside in May we're going to have to luck into a warm day or I'm going freeze to death. The top of my mother's dress is sleeveless and all lace."

"Well you will have our love to keep you warm," Castle reminded her with a crooked smile, "but just in case, let's check out the carriage house and see what the set-up would be for an inside ceremony." Castle kept an arm firmly around her shivering body as they crossed the winter brown lawn of the Van Amstel Estate. The carriage house interior was an intense relief. Bright light was reflected in the warm sheen of of paneled walls and reclaimed hardwood floors. The heating system was both effective and quiet. A wide space would provide room for a satin covered aisle for Kate's passage to her groom and more than enough area to set up tables, without chairs and guests colliding.

Kate gazed at the gas-lamp style lighting now updated with electricity, and the vintage photographs decorating the walls. Closing her eyes, she could picture tables with delicate arrangements of flowers, and hear a band playing while she and Castle took the floor in their first dance as a married couple. "It's perfect," she whispered.

They were hailed by Carlton, the major domo, who approached clipboard in hand. "Ms. Beckett, Mr. Castle, I would have thought it impossible to get a date for as close a time as you are suggesting and this never happens, but a private corporate party we had planned for the third weekend in May has been canceled. It seems it's a matter of securities fraud and all their assets have been frozen. However, their loss can be your gain. We have a long waiting list, but since you are here, if you can give me a deposit tonight, the date is yours. Kate and Castle stared at each other in silent agreement and Castle pulled out his checkbook.

Kate settled into the heated leather seat on the passenger side of Castle's Mercedes as he headed the car back to Manhattan. "It's getting real isn't it, Castle? We've got a venue, we've got a date. It's like dream."

"Maybe that cancellation was a sign that having our wedding at Van Amstel was meant to be," Castle offered. "Let's just hope that when we start dealing with invitations, and booking a band, not to mention having Mother try to turn the occasion into the social event of the century, the whole thing doesn't turn into a nightmare. We do have a history of attracting the weirdest kinds of trouble."

Kate reached over to touch his shoulder. "Let's try and keep attraction just between us. Maybe we have actually caught a break for once. You know what? I'm going to call Maddie right now. She can start the ball rolling. We do want her to cater, right? Or were you thinking about Rocco?"

"Maddie does have to hire a new chef first doesn't she?" Castle pointed out. "But if she can, sure. Rocco has enough celebrity notches on his door posts, and I like your friend."

"I think she likes you too, maybe a little too much. I caught her checking out your assets and I don't mean your bank account."

"Why Detective Beckett, is that jealousy I hear? Well Maddie does have that cute little scar on the bridge of her nose and those blue eyes of hers are huge and..."

"Castle!" Kate hissed.

Castle pulled the car over to the side of the road and reached out to caress Kate's cheek. "Kate, women check me out all the time. After all, I am ruggedly handsome. And it's not as if men don't cast their eyes lustfully on your stunning presence. Even Carlton was doing it just now. I'm not interested in Maddie or any woman except you and I hope you feel the same way about me."

"Castle you know I do, or I would have never accepted your proposal." Kate released her seat belt and leaned across the center console for a kiss. Castle unbuckled and met her lips with his own.

Lost in the moment, hands began to slip under coats when blue and red flashing lights shocked them to awareness. A flashlight shone through Castle's window and Castle lowered it. "You folks all right?" a uniformed officer inquired.

Heat rose in Kate's cheeks as she produced her badge. "Fine officer, thank you. We just got some new details on a case and we were discussing them."

"Of course, Detective," the cop agreed with a flash of mirth in his eyes. "Well this stretch of road is pretty poorly lit. Some kid on a cell phone could smash into you, parked in the dark on the shoulder this way. You might find a safer spot for your - discussion."

Castle nodded vigorously, re-buckling his seat belt. "Yes officer, we will do that."

"Kate scrubbed her hands over her still warm cheeks as the blue and white drove off. "Oh Castle, he knew."

Castle started the engine. "Kate, who cares? We're engaged. We just set a date. We're entitled to a little - discussion. Let's just see how fast I can get us back to the loft to continue it. I wish I had your gumball. And a siren would be really great too."

"Castle, that would be a terrible abuse of police privilege."

"Like you've never done that before. I'll just have to rely on my finely honed driving skills."

Kate rolled her eyes. "Right."

Like a true born and bred New Yorker, Castle found the route where driving at the right speed he could make almost every light. He nodded briefly at the doorman at his building before he and Kate ran for the elevator. As the doors closed, Castle pulled at the belt of Kate's coat. "I can tell this is going to be a great discussion."

"Meaningful and productive," Kate added, reaching for the buttons on his coat."

Castle quickly worked his key in the lock as soon as they arrived at the loft door and sweeping Kate up in his arms, kicked the door open. Alexis looked up from the couch where she was curled up with a book. "Dad is everything all right?"

Castle sighed as Kate pushed against him to be set down. "Why do I keep hearing that tonight? Alexis, every thing is fine. Great! Perfect! Kate and I just have some things to discuss. Enjoy your book." He led the way on the short walk through his office to his bedroom and slammed the door behind them. "Third time's the charm."

"About our discussion or your marriages?" Kate asked.

Castle clicked the lock on the bedroom door, pulled off Kate's coat and his own and let them drop to the floor. Plunging his fingers into her hair, he framed her face with his palms. "Both. Definitely both."

"Castle wait a minute," Kate interjected, as his lips approached hers. "I never did call Maddie."

Castle lowered his head again until she could feel the warmth of his breath on her face. "Later Kate, much later." His muscles tensed as their lips finally met, dreading another interruption. No lights flashed. No cell phones chimed. No doors opened. He lowered her to the bed in blessed relief.

A/N Okay guest. Jealousy you wanted, jealousy you got, a least a little bit.


	38. Chapter 38

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 38

Guests were just starting to arrive for New Year's Eve. Castle and Kate had invited an eclectic mix, smaller, but not greatly different from the guest list for their wedding. Kate's closest co-workers were there, Esposito, Ryan, and Karpowski. Lanie, in sleek and sleeveless red satin, was in her glory. Castle had invited his two groups of poker buddies and pluses, Captain Montgomery and Evelyn, Cannell, Connelly, Patterson, Judge Markaway, and Mayor Weldon. The gathering was rounded out by Martha's latest beau Bert, and by Jim Beckett.

Drinks, alcoholic and otherwise, flowed and Castle had provided a coffee corner with Lucas the super barrista, for those requiring aid to stay awake until the midnight hour. Alexis hovered near Lucas, with an intense interest in the details of foam art providing an excuse to ogle the handsome server. Jazz flowed unobtrusively from speakers in the great room and couches and chairs had been moved to provide conversation groups and a comfortable nest in front of the fireplace.

Castle circulated among the guests assuring they were happy with the food, drink, and company, while Kate grabbed Lanie and retreated to the bedroom. "What's up girlfriend, taking me away from the party?"

Kate cleared her throat nervously. "Lanie, I have a problem."

Lanies head bobbed side to side as she regarded her friend. "Girl, you've always got a problem. What's going on Kate?"

"I went overtime on my implant. It was due to run out a couple of months ago and things were so crazy with Castle's illness and everything that I just didn't think about it. And since I wasn't bleeding anyway I didn't pay much attention, but the last week or so I've been sick in the morning and my breasts are tender so I bought a test. It was positive. And before you ask, yes I did see my gynecologist and she confirmed it."

"Did you tell Castle?"

Kate shook her head. "I'm not sure how. I told him we were safe and then... Damn! We're not even getting married for five months. It's going to show."

"Seems to me that's the least of your worries. Look Kate, he's going to know soon anyway. He has a daughter. He knows what pregnancy looks like and he's going to notice you're upchucking your breakfast. If I were you," Lanie counseled, "I'd tell him before he figures it out for himself. He'll probably be happy. He loves kids."

"But Alexis is already a teenager," Kate protested, catching her lower lip between her teeth. "What if he's past wanting another little one?"

"Well then it's better if you find out now, isn't it? You really want to start the new year with that hanging over your head? Why don't I just get him in here now?"

Kate shook her head. "No Lanie, it's my problem. I'll do it. You go out there and have a good time. I noticed Javi's eyes were pretty much riveted to your cleavage."

"What can I say? Men love the girls. Okay, we'll go back out there together, but I better see you grabbing Castle before the ball drops."

"Lanie, I think it already has, but I will. I'm sure he's finished his rounds as the jovial host by now."

Castle spotted Kate rejoining the party and held out a glass of sparkling cider.. "Here, you haven't been into wine tonight. Or would you rather have one of Lucas' foamy creations? He has decaf. I've noticed that's what you've been drinking lately."

Kate drew a calming breath. "Yeah Castle, I kind of need to talk to you about that. Can we?" She pointed toward his office.

Castle's brow quirked at the nervous look on her face and he put down the glass. "Sure Kate. Of course."

Kate led the way through the office and into the bedroom, perching on the edge of the bed. Castle sat sideways next to her, studying her face. "We're here Kate. Talk to me."

Kate ran her fingers down the side of his face. "Castle, the wine, the coffee, it's because I'm..."

"Pregnant," Castle finished.

Kate stared wide-eyed. "How long have you known?"

"Maybe before you did. I know you, Kate. I know your body, what you like, what you don't like. You don't drink de-caf and you don't eat Saltines®. You also don't take off for appointments in the middle of the morning. I was almost a hundred percent sure but I was waiting for you to tell me."

"And you're all right with it, Castle?"

All right with it?" Castle repeated incredulously. "Kate, a baby from you and from me. What could be more perfect than that?"

"If I got pregnant after we were married?" Kate suggested.

"Kate, this isn't the fifties. We're a committed couple. Nobody, well almost nobody, cares about that anymore, especially since we're getting married anyway. I'm not sure how your father's going to take it. We could move the wedding up if you want to. We'd lose Van Amstel's, but we could do it. Or we could do a quickie at City Hall and then have the formal ceremony in May for reaffirming our vows. Whatever you want."

Kate expelled more air than she knew she had in her lungs. "Dad will be fine. He may be set in his ways about baseball, vinyl, and what he likes to eat, but he's always been adaptable to social change. If he wasn't, he never could have married a force of nature like my mother."

"You want to tell him now? You want to tell everyone? It would make for a hell of a party."

"Dad should hear it before anyone else does. So should Martha and Alexis, especially Alexis. She's going to have a brother or sister. How about if we call an impromptu family meeting? I can have Lanie herd everyone in. She already knows."

Castle shook his head, a wry smile on his lips. "I figured she did. What woman wouldn't tell her best friend? Sounds like a plan."

"Hardly news dear," Martha proclaimed during the small assembly in Castle's office. "I've seen your skin taking on a distinct greenish hue after Richard's morning scrambles for a while now and he hasn't even put any chocolate or marshmallows in them."

Jim Beckett drew his daughter to him. "I'm happy for you, Katie. I just hope you'll keep my grandchild out of the line of fire."

"I will, Dad," Kate assured him. "N.Y.P.D. regs will have me riding a desk soon and I know those are regs Captain Montgomery will enforce."

Alexis stood quietly, her arms crossed across her chest. "Hey, what's on your mind, sweetheart?" Castle prompted.

"I'm glad no one's going to be shooting at Kate, Dad, because it means no one is going to be shooting at you either." Castle reached out an arm, but his daughter stepped back. "But there've been a lot of changes happening very fast. Kate moving in, your engagement, the planning for the wedding, now this, it's just a lot to take in. I need some time to deal with it."

"Of course you do," Castle acknowledged. "I get it. But you'll see, this is going to be the best family ever!"

Alexis nodded gamely. "Yeah Dad, I'm sure you're right. Congratulations, to both of you. I think I'm going upstairs for a while now."

Martha touched Castle's arm as he stared after his daughter. "Don't worry, I'll check on her. She'll be fine. She always is. Now go and give the news to your guests. I'm sure they want as many excuses as possible to down your obscenely expensive Champagne."

As midnight approached, a mostly joyous crowd squeezed into Castle's office to view the happenings in Times Square on the big screen. Kate and Castle watched, fingers tightly entwined, as the countdown reached zero. The crystal sphere dropped, heralding all the promises of a new year.


	39. Chapter 39

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 39

Beckett clenched her fists as she stared down at the stack of paper on her desk. "Castle, I don't think I can take much more of this."

"Paperwork or pregnancy?" Castle inquired from his accustomed seat beside her.

"Being stuck behind a desk," she ground out. "I have to wait for Ryan and Esposito to bring me everything. It's frustrating!"

"We're still the brain center, you and I. We figure things out together. And you know I go out with them when I can, but they don't always let me. And lately Gina's really been on my back for new chapters. Well you know. You've seen me ducking her calls. I really should be writing now. The next thing I know, she'll come down here."

Beckett turned awkwardly in her chair at the sound of clicking heels. "Too late Castle. Isn't that the ice queen coming now?"

Castle regarded the determined blonde striding quickly toward them. "I shouldn't have invoked her name. Mentioning demons is what makes them appear." Castle ducked, covering his head with his hands.

"Rick, hiding out here isn't going to help," Gina announced. "You're like a little boy retreating to his club house to get out of doing his homework. You're going to deliver four chapters and you're going to do it by the end of the week."

"Or what? Are you going to stand over me like you did when we were married," Castle pouted, "or are you going to have one of those assistants you terrorize do it?"

"Oh, better," Gina declared triumphantly."I've enlisted Alexis. She's been dying to have you home more and I'm delivering you on a silver platter. She's going to make sure you stay at your desk and that you're writing, not playing Terra Quest."

"Oh no," Castle moaned. "My world is closing in."

"If Alexis doesn't see you in twenty minutes, she's going to call you every five minutes until she does," Gina gloated. "You better get moving."

"Sorry Beckett," Castle apologized, rising from his seat and giving her a quick kiss. "I'll get this done as fast as I can so I can get back to you, I promise."

"Sorry Detective." The hardness in Gina's eyes belied her words as she turned to follow Castle to the elevator. Beckett pillowed her face in her hands.

* * *

Alexis plunked a mug of coffee down on Castle's desk before moving behind his chair to check what was on his screen. "You don't have to do that," Castle informed her grumpily. "I'm getting it done. Believe me I'm motivated. Kate is miserable and there's nothing I can do to help her."

Alexis' eyes flashed. "Always about Detective Beckett, isn't it? Even when you're here and she's at the precinct, it's always about her."

"Sweetheart, It's about Kate because she needs me. She can't go out on cases the way she wants to. I'm partially responsible for that. So I've been trying to be her eyes and help her in any way I can."

"Dad, I need you too. We haven't done a science project together all year. I haven't been able to bounce ideas off you when I write a paper. We haven't fenced or even played laser tag. I miss you." A single tear rolled down Alexis' cheek as more threatened to overflow her eyes. "I almost lost you and now when you're back, you're around more for a baby that hasn't even been born yet than you are for me."

Castle came out of his chair and opened his arms. "Pumpkin, I am sorry. I'm so sorry. You're always so competent, so in charge, I thought you'd grown past needing me for those things. But I want to be here for you. You'll never be less important to me than Kate or the baby. That hasn't changed and it never will. You are all the joys of my heart."

"Dad, I'm sorry too. I've been acting like a bitch."

"I think Gina may have hit you with her freeze ray. I'm glad there's a thaw. I've already got a chapter done and started on another one. I'll defeat her witchy powers in no time. But right now I'm going to make your favorite dinner. Pasta carbonara?"

"Pasta carbonara," Alexis agreed. "And can I go to Fratelli's to pick up one of their chocolate cheese cakes?"

Castle pulled out his wallet. "You've got it."

* * *

As Kate sniffed the savory aroma emanating from beneath the door of the loft. What would have turned her stomach in the morning now dragged her forward. Castle was just draining the pasta and Alexis was adding croutons for the finishing touch on a salad. Castle greeted her smiling. "Perfect timing. You can light the candles."

Kate gazed at him in confusion."What are we celebrating? The last time I saw you, Gina was flaying your ass."

"I have made considerable progress toward satisfying Black Pawn's insatiable appetite my highly salable prose," Castle announced smugly. "So tonight we feast - except for Mother. She's out with Bert."

Kate used a stick lighter on white tapers in crystal candle holders. "She'll be sorry she missed this, but she and Bert are pretty hot and heavy lately, aren't they?"

"Bert's the anti-Chet," Castle opined. "Bert drives an Aston Martin, Chet doesn't drive at all. Chet's a conservative, Bert's a progressive. Chet is a suit, Bert's a Bohemian. Mother said she wanted some fun and she's getting it and she doesn't have to worry about Bert running off with her money. He's even more loaded than Chet. He's probably one of the few people to make money investing in shows and he has a chain of Yoga spas that do very well too. Bert's good for Mother, although after what she did at our get acquainted dinner with your Dad, I half expected her to take up with him. She certainly defended him with a flaming sword, or at least a flaming tongue."

"That would have tied everything up neatly," Kate offered. "But I can't honestly say I've seen my father look at another woman since my mother died. I wish he would. He could use a little joy in his life right now. Maybe someday the right woman will come along, but it seems like he's one and done."

"You never know, do you?" Alexis put in "I mean you and Dad are together now but who would have thought that would happen from the way you used to treat him?"

The lines bracketing Castle's mouth deepened. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Just that when you two started solving cases together and you tried to tell her she had the wrong guy - which she did, she had you arrested. She was always insulting you and making fun of you. I couldn't understand how you took it." Alexis gazed at her father, baffled. "Why are you laughing?"

"Alexis, do you remember Billy Bornstein?" Castle asked, the corners of his eyes crinkling.

"Yeah Dad, of course. We were in third grade together. I thought he was cute."

"And did you tell him that?" Castle queried.

Alexis snorted. "Of course not! That would have been mushy."

"And what did you do?" Castle prompted.

"I punched him. I gave him a black eye. He told everyone his brother did it so they wouldn't know he'd been hit by a girl." Realization spread slowly across Alexis' pale features. "Then we became really good friends. We climbed trees together in the park and did all kinds of stuff until his parents moved to Idaho. He's still a Facebook friend. So are you saying Detective Beckett acted like that because she liked you? And you knew it?"

Face burning, Kate suddenly gave intense attention to her pasta. Castle bent over to kiss her hair. "Let's just say I had my suspicions."

"Detective Beckett, is that true?" Alexis questioned.

Kate jammed a fork full of bacony pasta into her mouth and Castle grinned. "I think my beautiful bride-to-be is asserting her right to remain silent."

A/N For Guest: I looked it up when I got the idea and the answer is, it's a known side effect.


	40. Chapter 40

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 40

Alexis squealed as she bounced to her father's desk. "Dad, I got in, I got in!"

Castle looked up blankly from his writing, forcing a smile to his face. "Yay! You got in! Got in to what?"

"The summer program at Princeton, Dad," she reminded him. "Remember when I applied?"

Confusion slackened Castle's features. "I thought you were wait-listed."

"A spot opened up and it's perfect! It starts the weekend right after your wedding. But we have to go this weekend for orientation."

"We?" Castle questioned.

"Yeah, since we're all under eighteen, the parents have to go. You have to be informed about where we're going live, what we're going to be doing, and you have to pay them."

"And pay them," Castle repeated. "Does the definition of parents stretch to include your future stepmother? I'd love to get her out of instant reach of the precinct and better still have her check out security. You never know what's lurking around a campus these days."

Alexis gave Castle a skeptical look. "Really Dad?" It's Princeton, not Muggers University."

"It's in New Jersey," Castle worried.

"And that's worse than New York?" Alexis argued. "Anyway, I'll be in a dorm room on campus, but there's a four star inn only a mile away. They might be full already, but if you want to try to get a room you'd better hurry. Of course there's a Holiday Inn, too."

Castle gave a little shudder. "I'll try for the four star. A pregnant woman should have her comforts. So, bring me your cache of information. I'm sure you have one."

"Only six files," Alexis replied. "I'll get them."

* * *

The seat warmers were on their highest setting and the heat turned on full blast as Castle drove through the menacing gray that blanketed the road. "Looks like they're hailing the conquering heroine," he commented as balls of ice began to pelt the windshield.

Alexis shifted in the back seat so she could see the navigation on the dash. "Very funny Dad. We only have a few more miles to go to the building where registration is. Just be careful until we get there."

The flat female voice of the computer interrupted. "In a quarter mile, make a left."

"Being bossed around by women," Castle joked, "the story of my life."

"I'd take offense at that if I didn't know how much you get off on it," Kate teased.

Alexis stuck her fingers in her ears defensively chanting, "La la, la, la."

The five hundred acres of the Princeton campus loomed ahead and despite his protests, Castle continued following the navigation system's directions. He pulled into the parking area of a newer looking building sporting a welcome banner bravely resisting the efforts of the wind to tear it moorings. Debarking from the driver's seat, Castle circled the car to help Kate and Alexis find their footing on the icy asphalt.

Kate yanked on her belt to tighten her hooded coat around her, finding her efforts to cinch it firmly around her waist less successful than they had been even a week before. Though no bump was visible yet, she was all too aware of the changes in her body and not at all sure if she was comfortable with them. Certainly Castle was, lavishly showing his appreciation for the growing volume of her breasts. She wished she shared his enthusiasm, but she imagined it would come eventually. Martha had encouraged her that once she hit the fourth month she would probably feel terrific. Kate was trying to look forward to that, but also aware that if she was hit by the promised burst of energy, she'd chafe even more at her desk-bound restrictions. She looked around at the stately campus. This wasn't the time to worry about her problems. It was Alexis' day and she would try her best to be supportive of her future step-daughter.

Castle put a leather gloved hand under her elbow. "You okay? It looks like the hail's blown past. It shouldn't be too bad getting to the building. Much as I love what they do for your incredibly sexy legs, I'm glad you didn't insist on the usual spikes on your footwear."

Kate remembered that she had started to put on what Castle referred to as her "mistress boots," but just didn't feel that they fit into a parental image, and put them aside in favor of flatter ones. Now she was glad she'd made the choice, but wondered how many other changes her transition into the Castle family would bring. Again, she mentally kicked herself. This was neither the time or the place. "I'm fine Castle. Let's get Alexis signed in and settled."

Alexis presented the forms she had checked and rechecked prior to their departure and Castle presented a check which seemed hefty, even by his standards. The actual check-in took only about twenty minutes with Alexis receiving her room assignment, along with a campus map, and Castle receiving a list of local dining establishments. They were all instructed to return later that afternoon for the first of the actual orientation sessions.

Castle consulted his watch. "Eleven A.M.. Alexis we can find your room and put your stuff away and we should still have plenty of time to avail ourselves of someplace on their handy lunch list. Maybe Kate and I will even have time to check into our Inn."

Kate perused the information sheet. "Castle, one of these restaurants actually is at our Inn. Eating there would probably be the most efficient way to go, especially considering the weather."

"I bow to my future wife's logistical skills," Castle acknowledged. "Dorm room, then Inn."

By the time they reached Alexis' assigned quarters, the walks and stairs had been salted and Castle had little difficulty helping Alexis stow her book filled luggage. "Room 401," Alexis noted. "Hey Dad, it's your birthday."

"April Fools Day, I'm not sure if that's a good omen or an ominous one." Castle mused. "But I certainly won't forget it."

The Inn, on a street lined by ancient trees, appeared to date back to the founding of the University in the 1700's. The colonial exterior reminded Castle of the hotel he and Kate had stayed at in the Ukraine, and like that hotel, the interior had been completely updated. Arriving too early for check in, he, Kate, and Alexis sought out the cozy restaurant which was just opening for lunch. A cheerful and casually dressed hostess handed out menus. Castle flipped open his leather bound folder. I'd say this place was student friendly - if it wasn't for the prices. When I was a student I could have eaten on the price of lunch here for a month. Come to think of it, I did."

Alexis touched his arm in distress. "Dad, we could always go somewhere else."

Castle covered her hand with the warmth of his own. "Sweetie, it's fine. Le Cirque is actually worse and we go there all the time. I was just thinking about some of your fellow scholars."

"Yeah, this would have been way outside my student budget too," Kate noted.

"Well this tasting menu looks a lot like the one at Rocco's place, maybe even a little better. Are you girls feeling adventurous?" Castle inquired.

"Sure Dad," Alexis agreed.

Kate smiled across the table, her feet meeting Castle's underneath. "I better be. Life with you is one long adventure, Castle."

Castle nestled his knee against hers. "Very true."

Comfortably fortified by an assortment of savory concoctions and sweet confections, Castle and Kate checked into their room, leaving Alexis to explore the impressive panoply of official Princeton University merchandise in the gift shop.

Kate sank on the bed, extending her legs and rotating her feet at the ankles.

"Do you want to rest a couple of minutes? We have time before we need to go back for the session." Castle stilled her booted feet in his large hands. "I can rub these for you. Your dainty feet, not the boots."

Kate rolled her eyes. "Castle, my feet are hardly dainty. I wear a size 9."

"I wear a 10, so you're dainty compared to me," Castle insisted.

"Castle, you're five inches taller than I am and you have impossibly short toes. If anyone has dainty feet, it's you. Thank you, but no foot rub right now. If my boots come off I'm not going to want to put them on again, and we have places to go and people to see."

Castle sat beside her on the over-sized and luxuriously appointed bed. "Kate, I know this whole parenthood thing is taking some getting used to for you, and this trip is just one more complication. But we don't have anywhere else we'll need to be tonight. We could even get room service. It will be just you and me." He smoothed a hand over the satiny bedspread. "And this lovely playground, if you feel up to climbing on the monkey bars."

Kate wrapped her arms around his neck, briefly touching her forehead to his. "Castle, that's a climb I'm up to making any time."


	41. Chapter 41

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 41

Castle was plucked from his dreamscape by the movement of the mattress as Kate stretched languorously beside him. He turned to admire the lithe motion of her body. "Good morning."

Kate's lips tweaked upwards in satisfaction as she helped herself to a kiss. "Good morning to you too." She rose and padded barefoot to peek through the insulated drapes. "The sun's out! The pavement looks dry too. It should be an easier drive back to the city after our sessions today."

Castle reached for his watch on the bedside table. "The campus tour isn't until ten." He patted the bed beside him and wiggled his eyebrows. "We've got time, if you want to grab a little more sleep, or maybe grab something else."

"Definitely not sleepy," Kate decided, "but I would love to grab something - a shower, especially if you'll keep me company. I noticed the one here has those nozzles that give a full body massage. And we can always help it along."

Castle sprang upright. "I'm always for helping things along."

* * *

Kate closed her eyes, enjoying the pressure against her skin as pulsating water poured from three directions into the steam-filled enclosure. "Anywhere that needs some extra attention?" Castle inquired.

Kate guided his hand. "There are some spots." Kate gasped at his intimate touch. "That's definitely one of them."

Castle continued the action of his fingers as he sipped at the moisture in the notch at the base of her neck. "Always glad to be of service."

Kate pressed against his questing digits as her need flared, challenging the heat of the swirling vapors. "Castle!"

Their lips met, wet and needy and Kate wrapped her legs around Castle's waist as he lifted her. The slickness imparted by the streaming liquid made their joining too smooth, too easy. Kate's hips ground without conscious command, driven by need for more friction, more sensation. Castle groaned. "Kate you're..."

"I know, Castle," she panted. "But I need. I'm almost." Her back arched as a cry was forced from her throat. Castle's release met hers and he held her as the waves pummeled them both.

Castle opened eyes forced shut by passion and effort, to meet Kate's hazel orbs. "Good morning again. And may I just say that coffee can provide a lift, but this kind beats it all to hell."

"Well since I'm not allowed coffee with any lift anymore, I would definitely go with this as the way to kick start a morning," Kate agreed, as he set her on her feet.

Castle turned off the taps. "I'm definitely going to look into getting one of these for the loft." Thick terry towels waited on a warming bar and Castle wrapped one around Kate before securing another at his waist. "I suspect my watch will confirm that while our time was magnificently spent, if we're going to meet Alexis for the campus tour we'll have to hurry. But so worth it!"

Using a campus shuttle, Alexis met up with Kate and Castle at the Frist Campus Center. Castle appreciatively regarded the student study areas, theater, lounges and box office, but gazed suspiciously at the boys hanging around the extensive food court. "They look hungry."

"Castle, of course they're hungry. College students, especially boys, are always hungry," Kate asserted. "Weren't you?"

"I wasn't just talking about food. And yes I was, on both scores. That's what worries me."

"Dad, I can take care of myself," Alexis protested. "And we'll have older group leaders we can go to if we have a problem. They have to be at least twenty-one."

"And I'm supposed to be comforted by that? That your advisers are old enough to buy alcohol? I wonder if they still make chastity belts," Castle mused. "Maybe I could special order. A lot of returning troops need jobs. Ooh! Maybe I could hire a commando as a bodyguard. "

"Dad, you're being ridiculous," Alexis complained. "I'm the person in the family that doesn't get into trouble. When you first started working with Detective Beckett, Gram and I had to bail you out of jail, and it wasn't the first time. Remember your Lady Godiva imitation on the police horse? Besides I won't be around the college boys much. There will just be high school boys in my dorm."

"A co-ed dorm with high school boys!" Castle exclaimed. "Could this get any worse?"

"Castle, take a breath," Kate advised. "We have a few months. If it will make you feel any better, I can give Alexis a crash course in self defense."

"That actually sounds like fun," Alexis put in. "And it would make me safer in New York, too. There are places I need to go where I can't bring a commando or wear a chastity belt."

"I suppose I can live with a Kate Beckett certification of safety," Castle conceded as a horn blew, summoning them to a bus for the rest of the tour.

Alexis was very taken with the Woolworth Center for musical studies as a place to practice her violin virtuosity. She would have loved to see students playing in the performance arch at 1879 Hall, but that was precluded by the still bitter temperatures. She had no interest in the School of Architecture, but the schools of International and Public Affairs and of Engineering and Applied Science both held her attention. The bus circuit was rounded out by visits to a number of classroom buildings and an explanation of the honor code adopted by the students who used them. After a turn by the chapel, accommodating the needs of numerous denominations, students and parents were delivered back to Frist.

Deciding it would be best if Castle didn't return to the food court for lunch, Kate steered their little group to the less frenetic Cafe Vivian, a vegan friendly home of organic and sustainable food. Alexis was impressed by the concept and despite Castle's natural aversion to healthy eating, he found he actually enjoyed the cheese-free pizza.

There was one more session, discussing the details of the program week by week and the supplies and materials the students were expected to bring with them, before students were dispatched back to their rooms to retrieve their luggage before returning home.

"Dad, you have to admit that was cool," Alexis insisted as Castle followed the car's computerized voice to return to the city. "There are so many possibilities. So many things to learn."

Castle was about to reply when Kate's phone chimed. The color drained from Kate's face as she stared at the screen and her cell slipped from her hand. Castle reached over to touch her arm. "Kate, what is it?"

"It was a text from my Aunt Theresa. She was cleaning out a closet at my dad's apartment and she found some of my mother's papers. Castle, they were from a case Mom was working on just before she was killed. It was about a mobster named Pulgatti who was convicted of the murder of an undercover FBI agent. Pulgatti claimed he was innocent and my mother believed him. This might be the clue I was waiting for. But Montgomery will never let me investigate."

Castle squeezed her fingers. "Kate, do you want to investigate?"

Kate drew an unsteady breath. "Castle, I have to."

"Then," Castle declared, "we don't ask."


	42. Chapter 42

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 42

Aunt Theresa's hair was white but her eyes were bright and her step lively. Apartment sitting while Jim Beckett had been on the road taking depositions, she had taken the opportunity to check the contents of boxes which had lain unopened and layered in dust for twelve years. Most had contained Johanna Beckett's clothes, shoes, and personal items, hastily packed and shoved out of sight after her death. Theresa had been surprised to find the papers, since Johanna had generally kept her work in her office, but she had immediately realized they were the sort of evidence Kate had been seeking since Johanna's death. With one hand firmly clutching a string-tied folder, Theresa extended the other to Castle. "So I finally meet the fiancé. It's about time, although I can't say I'm pleased the two of you got ahead of yourselves."

"Mrs. Mondavi, I promise you that Kate and our child will have all the love and support anyone could ever give, and I'll make an honest woman out of Kate before the baby is born."

"See that you do," Theresa instructed. She held out the folder. "Katie, are you sure you want this? The good Lord knows you've suffered enough without opening your wounds yet again."

Castle wrapped a protective arm around Kate as she answered. "Aunt Theresa, you know I have to take it. Those wounds never really closed and they'll never heal until I know the truth. Someone hired Dick Coonan to kill my mother and I need to know who."

"Very well," Theresa acceded, "but be careful. And you," she continued, fixing Castle with a commanding stare, "take care of both of them, or I have a pair of pinking shears I've just had sharpened."

Castle shuddered involuntarily. "Yes, Ma'am."

Kate examined the papers as Castle drove back to the loft. "Castle, my mother's contacts with Coonan's other victims are here, and a listing of petitions she planned to file, but not her actual discussion with Joe Pulgatti. There's nothing here that indicates why Coonan was hired to kill her or who might have hired him."

"There's one person who knows," Castle pointed out, "Joe Pulgatti. Are you up for talking to him? You want me to head for Rikers?"

Kate ran her fingers over the ink of her Johanna Beckett's careful notes. "Let's go, Castle. There's no other way."

* * *

Joe Pulgatti's brows rose and his jaw gaped when Beckett entered the room. "Johanna?" he whispered.

"No, Kate, Detective Kate Beckett. Johanna was my mother. Obviously you knew her."

Pulgatti sank into a chair. "For a moment I thought you were a ghost. You know you look just like her?"

"You contacted Johanna Beckett about your case?" Castle asked.

"Damn straight, her and every other civil rights attorney in New York. I told them all I was innocent. She was the only one who wrote back. Then she came to see me – a few times. She talked about you," Pulgatti told Kate. "She was really proud of you, getting into Stanford, studying pre-law. I'm surprised you became a cop. She thought you were on your way to the Supreme Court."

"Yeah well twelve years ago I thought so too," Kate admitted, "but things change. I think your case changed them. Tell me, Mr. Pulgatti, if you were innocent, why did you confess?"

"Because I don't like needles. The death penalty was still a reality in New York back then and there was this hot shot district attorney who swore the only chance I had of saving my neck was to confess. But I didn't kill Bob Armen. Bobby and I were buddies. I had no idea he was an undercover fed until after he died. I told your mother all of that, and what really happened. She was looking into it when she died. I heard the cops wrote it off as a random killing, but later you shot the hit man who did it. Good for you. I hope he died painfully."

Kate's short nails dug into her palms as her fists clenched. "Unfortunately not, and he died before he could tell me who hired him, but I'm sure it had to do with your case. Everyone my mother contacted about it is dead too, all killed by Dick Coonan. If you didn't kill Bob Armen, then whoever did, hired Dick Coonan to cover it up. And I'm going to get that S.O.B.. Joe, can you tell me what you told my mother?"

"Sure, but you have to understand what was going on at the time. There was a group of cops playing vigilante. They were kidnapping members of all the families of the street, beating them up and holding them for ransom. It had gotten so bad that the families made a truce so they could try to figure out which cops were in on it. That night Bobby and I were out in the alley grabbing a smoke and two cop cars pull up. Three guys jump out, wearing gloves and ski masks. They must not have known Bobby was a fed either. They went after us. He pulled a gun and one of them grabbed it. Next thing I know, Bobby was dead. Then two cops, Raglan and McCallister came to arrest me for the murder. But it was a blind alley. There were no cameras up then. Nobody could have known I was in the alley except the cops that killed Bobby. One of them must have set me up to take the fall and hired Dick Coonan to take out your mother and the rest. You find that cop, Detective Beckett you find your mother's murderer."

"Do you believe him?" Castle asked as they left the prison.

Kate nodded slowly. "I do, at least the part about my mother dying as some part of a cover-up. Having dirty cops involved makes me sick, but it makes sense. It would have made it easy to write off my mother's case as a random slaying. Also, I remember Raglan. He was the cop on my mother's case, the one who told me she was dead. He's probably retired by now. We need to track him down, but I can't do it from the precinct. I can trust Ryan and Esposito, but if this is all about dirty cops, there's no way of knowing who might still be involved."

Castle pulled him to her with an arm around her waist. "Well then it's a good thing we have other resources."

* * *

Kate knocked for the third time on John Raglan's door, identifying herself as N.Y.P.D.. A woman in a sweatsuit and slippers emerged from the apartment across the hall. "He ain't there. I been picking up his mail for him. Poor guy's at Mercy General, probably not coming back."

John Raglan was a fragile stick figure against the stiff linens of his hospital bed. "I was wondering if you'd ever show up," He creaked through cracked lips.

Kate picked up a glass with a bent straw from the table at his bedside and held it to his mouth. He took a labored sip. "Why Detective Raglan?"

"You dropped Dick Coonan for your mother's murder. It was splashed all over the papers. I knew you'd revisit the case and I'm ready to tell you what you want to know. No one can hurt me now, at least not on this earth. About six months ago I got the long face from the doc. Lymphoma. They've done everything they could. It's just a matter of time now, and not much time."

Kate jammed her hands in her pockets as they began to shake. "Did you hire Coonan to kill my mother?"

"No, but it was done to cover up something I - and others did. But we were dwarfed by someone else, someone with real power." Raglan's voice began to fade.

Beckett offered more water, but he drifted away. "Raglan!" she shouted desperately. "Stay with me. Who's responsible for my mother's murder?"

Castle gently laid a hand on Kate's shoulder. "He's out. We could come back later."

"Castle, I'm not going anywhere," Kate insisted. "When he wakes up, he's going to tell me what I need to know.


	43. Chapter 43

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 43

Kate tried her best to relax in the comfortable chair Castle had appropriated from somewhere in the hospital. John Raglan had been out for hours. Her back was stiff and she desperately needed to pee. Castle had gone in search of juice and a snack for her and coffee for himself, leaving her with no one to spell her in her watch, when a large male nurse entered the room and began to examine Raglan's IV. Kate flashed her badge. "I'm just going to pop in there for a second," she told him indicating the attached lavatory. "can you call me if he regains consciousness?"

"No sweat," the nurse replied.

With a sigh of relief, Kate had relieved the pressure in her abdomen and was washing her hands when the monitors attached to Raglan began to scream an alarm. She hurried to the bedside, expecting to find the nurse, but there was no sign of him. A different nurse came running into the room with a doctor. "There's no heartbeat or respiration," the doctor reported, shaking her head. "Time of death, seven-twenty P.M. "

"Wait a minute!" Kate protested. "Aren't you going to do something? You didn't even try to revive him!" Beckett showed her badge. "He's a witness. I need his statement."

"I'm sorry, Detective," Doctor Wong replied. "Mr. Raglan has a 'Do not resuscitate' order. Treatment had failed. There was nothing we could do except try to keep him comfortable. This was expected any time."

"I don't understand, there was a nurse just in here injecting something in his IV."

Wong looked puzzled. "That shouldn't have been necessary. He was on a morphine drip and there was nothing else prescribed. What nurse?"

Beckett closed her eyes for an image. "He was about six one, dark hair, late thirties."

""There's no nurse like that on this floor," the nurse accompanying Wong asserted.

"Dammit!" Kate gritted out.

Castle appeared in the doorway as she shouted. Dropping cups and a paper bag on a nearby table, he rushed to her. "What happened?"

Kate's voice trembled with the threat of tears. "He's dead Castle, taken out by a killer posing as a nurse. I was just in the bathroom for a minute. If I'd just held it! God! He was going to tell me everything! Now I'm nowhere."

Castle grasped her shoulders, feeling the pain radiating from her eyes. "Kate you had no reason to suspect anyone was after Raglan and certainly no reason to suspect a nurse. But you were on scene for a murder. That means you investigate. You've got this. There have to be some breadcrumbs leading to the killer."

* * *

"What the hell were you doing in the field investigating a case?" Montgomery demanded. "You're on restricted duty, which means, to refresh your memory Detective, you work your cases from the bullpen."

"Sir, it wasn't officially a case," Kate explained. "I was just following up on some new information from my family. There was no case until Raglan was murdered. And as the first detective on the scene, I'm primary."

Montgomery paced his office. "Well you can damn well be primary from here. So what have you got?"

"We have unis canvassing with my description of the faux nurse and Ryan is scrubbing the hospital security footage looking for him," Kate reported. "We're also checking for any calls that went out from Rikers when Castle and I went to visit Pulgatti. Someone had to sic that that killer on Raglan."

Montgomery waved Kate and Castle toward the door. "All right, get on it."

"So what weren't you telling him?" Castle asked as they returned to Kate's desk.

"McCallister, Castle. He was the other cop Pulgatti mentioned. He has to know something."

"You can't go see him, Kate," Castle cautioned. "Montgomery will pull us off the case completely."

"No but as primary, I can get Ryan and Esposito to track him down and still conduct the interrogation myself. I'll put them on it, and I asked Lanie to email me everything she found out from Raglan's autopsy. Maybe whatever the killer put in his IV is traceable."

* * *

Gary McCallister sat in the interrogation lounge, taking draws from his pocket flask. He was pretty sure why he was there. He knew his old partner John Raglan had been dying and that he'd wanted to unburden himself to to the daughter of Johanna Beckett. Gary had made enough visits to the hospital to convince John to keep his peace, or he thought he had. But now John was dead and Gary was at the Twelfth awaiting questioning. It was obvious that putting him in the lounge instead of the box was merely a matter of professional courtesy. They were using interrogation 101 on him, leaving him by himself to stew and wait with dread for what would come next. He didn't have much longer to wait. A beautiful woman with a detective's badge hanging from her neck came in. She was older, but still easily recognizable as Johanna's daughter Kate, now a detective. She was followed by a tall, solidly built man who from the haircut and custom made shirt, was no cop.

"Detective McCallister, I don't know if you remember me, I'm Kate Beckett. This is Mr. Castle. We need to ask you some questions about John Raglan."

"John's dying. Cancer," Gary stated flatly.

Kate's voice dropped to a sympathetic tone. "I'm sorry to have to be the one to tell you, but John Raglan is dead and it wasn't the cancer. He was murdered. Detective McCallister, do you have any idea who might have wanted to take John Raglan out?"

Gary wished he could gulp the rest of the contents of his flask, but there was still a chance to lead the investigation in the direction he wanted. "I might. John had a thing for the ponies - losing ponies. He got in pretty deep. You know, behind on the rent, living off credit cards. Then he started making trips from Washington Heights downtown and suddenly he wasn't broke anymore."

"And who was he making these trips for?" Beckett prompted.

"He never told me, but I had my suspicions. There's a drug dealer named Vulcan Simmons. Big black motherf***er. Used to do his business out of the Heights. The way I figure it, what better way to ferry his product downtown than with a cop? Maybe Simmons was afraid of some death bed confession and sent someone to take him out. I hear he's a big deal now, runs a lot of the drug trade in all five boroughs and the suburbs too."

Beckett and Castle looked at each other. "Could you excuse us for a moment, Detective," she murmured as she and Castle left the room.

"Castle," Lanie said that Raglan died of an overdose of opioids. "That would have been easy for a drug dealer. An injection of heroin into the IV would have shown up the same on a tox screen, at least a preliminary one, as the morphine Raglan was already on. She said if I hadn't seen that nurse, she and just about any other M.E. would have assumed he just passed way. The guy I saw was white, but Simmons could have sent someone."

Castle shook his head doubtfully. "That doesn't track with what Pulgatti said about the cop vigilantes. If Raglan was part of that, he would have been making money off the ransoms. Why would he need to transport drugs?"

Beckett pursed her lips. "I don't know Castle. Gamblers can blow through a lot of money. And my mother did have a connection with Washington Heights. She started a program to clean up the neighborhood up there. Simmons might have wanted to get rid of her for that and if Raglan knew about it, Simmons would have wanted him dead for two reasons. Even if McCallister is giving us a load of bull, we still need to check it out. I'm going to have Ryan and Esposito track Simmons down and bring him in."

"What about McCallister?" Castle queried. "He was Raglan's partner. If he's sending us on a snipe hunt, he's probably involved in this up to his neck."

"We're still checking the call from Rikers. That may point us in the right direction, But right now we don't have anything on McCallister. I'll let him go and put a surveillance team on him," Beckett decided. "I'll make sure they're younger cops who wouldn't have any connection to the time my mother was killed. If McCallister's involved, someone may try to contact him - or take him out too. Either way, we'll have people there."


	44. Chapter 44

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 44

Beckett's anger was white hot but her fury was mostly directed at herself. She had let Vulcan Simmons get to her. She should have been easily able to withstand the taunting and teasing from her suspect. She had faced much worse across the table in the box. But Simmons has pushed her buttons, making her mother out to be useless trash. She had almost put Simmons through a mirror. If Ryan and Esposito hadn't intervened, she would have - or Castle might have. He was right by her side. Now Montgomery had cut Simmons loose and sent her home.

She wrapped her hands around the cup of warm spicy cider Castle brought. Dropping to a seat beside her on the couch, Castle cupped her cheek in his wide palm."There was twelve years of rage in that shove, Kate. And probably more than a few pregnancy hormones. Behind the bluster, Montgomery understood that. That's probably why he just put Ryan and Esposito on point on the case instead of throwing you off it entirely and why he sent you into a time out for a while instead of suspending you."

"I know Castle, but it doesn't make it any better. I lost control. I'm trained for interrogation. It shouldn't have happened."

"Well even if we had a Tardis, you couldn't change it. You can't mess with your own time line. So we'll just have to move ahead from here. So what's the next step?"

Kate took a breath and put her cup on the coffee table. "Ryan and Esposito will have the results of the canvass and they'll be checking the hospital video. "I'll call Lanie. She sent Raglan's IV tubing to the lab for analysis. She should have some results by now."

After her call to the M.E., Kate shoved her phone back into her pocket as her lips formed a stiff line. "That didn't help. With the morphine matching what was used at the hospital and a vial missing from inventory, there's no tie to Vulcan Simmons at all. Whoever our faux nurse was, he stole the morphine he used, probably right before he killed Raglan."

"But wouldn't there have been a camera where they lock up the drugs?" Castle wondered.

"Yeah, I'll let Ryan know to look for our killer there, but if the guy's a pro, he would have known about the camera and kept his face away from it. I want to check out the calls from Rikers and then we'll probably need to concentrate on McCallister. Much as I'd love to see Simmons rot in hell, McCallister was probably sending us down a blind alley. I think Pulgatti was telling us the truth and McCallister knows exactly what Raglan was going to tell us." Kate's pocket chimed and she pulled out her phone again. "That's an email with the Rikers calls. I'm going to send them to the screen in your office."

Castle pointed at a line on the display. "Look at that. That call went out about two minutes after we would have signed out. Can you run a trace?"

Kate's mouth turned in an upward direction for the first time since Raglan's death. "Yeah, I have an app on my phone for that. Just got it. N.Y.P.D. Issue."

"Sooo jealous," Castle declared as she tapped in the numbers.

"The call went to a burner." Kate reported.

"Disappointment but no surprise there," Castle commented.

"But this is the interesting part, Castle, the call came from a James Perkins. I know him. He's a guard at Rikers. He used to hit on me before you put this hunk of rock on my finger. Why would a guard be calling a burner phone?"

"Castle raised an eyebrow. "Why indeed? Sounds like Guard Perkins could use some checking out."

"I can ask Ryan and Esposito to request his financials but they probably won't be in until tomorrow and Montgomery won't let me back in the precinct until then anyway. I hate to sit around that long."

Castle grinned. "I've gotta guy."

"What do you mean you've gotta guy?"

"People call me trying to get me to invest in stuff all the time," Castle explained. "It's my cross to bear as a best selling author. My business manager checks out some of them, but I have someone I use who's faster and a little more creative."

"Creative huh? Alright Castle, but if you lose your muse because Montgomery throws me off the force, it's your own fault."

"Have no fear," Castle assured her. "If nothing else, Tanu is discreet."

"When Tanu showed up at the door of the loft, Kate had trouble imagining how he managed discretion. Castle carefully ushered the three hundred pound Samoan to the loft's largest chair. "Ricky, I did some checking on your boy Perkins. On the surface he looks clean. Steady job, clean record, no complaints, but I looked at his phone records."

"How did you look at his phone records?" Beckett interrupted. "We need a warrant for that."

"If I don't tell you, then you can claim ignorance, which is what I assume you want to do," Tanu told her mildly, but with mischief tugging at the corners of his eyes. "Anyway, I saw a number I recognized, a front for a bookie operation. Then I checked his bank account - up and down like a yo-yo before it hit a long stretch of rock bottom, then suddenly he's riding high again and not from a winning horse. The man had his palm seriously greased. There was a transfer of fifty thousand from an off-shore account. And here's another thing. Perkins has a buddy in D.C. who does the kind of work you don't put on a resume. They had calls back and forth before the transfer. Whatever your boy's into, there's someone with a lot of juice behind it."

"Thanks bro, I owe you," Castle said.

"Oh you'll get my bill," Tanu assured him, "with a surcharge for a rush job. And of course there's..."

"Right, Castle confirmed, turning to retrieve something from his office and returning with a small plastic figure.

Tanu nestled his prize in one large hand. "Strawberry Shortcake. You're the best man!"

Castle clapped him on one massive arm. "Enjoy it!"

"Strawberry Shortcake?" Kate giggled as soon as Tanu had departed. "Really Castle?"

"Everyone's got a weakness. The man loves them. Alexis used to collect them before she decided that Star Wars was more her style. I bought them from her. She charged me a month of banana splits and a Princess Leia. Best deal I ever made. Tanu gives me priority service every time."

"I can't argue with results, Castle. I'll go over the records the boys get tomorrow and it will give me an excuse to follow up on what Tanu told us."

Castle worked a fingertip under the neckline of her blouse. "And what would you like to to do to pass the rest of the time of your banishment tonight?"

Beckett stretched upwards, her hands twining at the back of his neck. "Hadn't thought about it, Castle, but I'm sure that together we can figure something out."


	45. Chapter 45

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 45

Kate stretched in front of one of the loft's long windows as the last of the morning color left the sky. The street below was already alive with people getting an early start to work or just seeking the nearest coffee bar, but her cop's eyes caught a man who didn't fit the New York mold. He stood on the curb across the street from the loft as if waiting to hail a cab, but several passed him and he made no attempt to flag one down. At that distance she couldn't make out the details of his face, but he was tall and dark haired with the same build as Raglan's murderous nurse.

"Castle!" she called, not wanting to look away. "I need your camera, the one with the high-power zoom, now." The tone of her voice left no doubt in Castle's mind about the urgency of her request. He ran to get the camera from his office. Kate took it, snapping a blast of photos of the lurker. "Can you get these on your computer and print me out an image? I need to keep eyes on the guy down there."

Castle hurried to do as she asked, standing in front of the printer as it produced a picture and grabbing the photo as soon as it hit the tray. He handed it to Kate.

She had no doubt. "Castle, this is the man who murdered Raglan, the one who posed as a nurse. I need my phone. I'm going to call Esposito to put someone on him and I need you to email those images to Ryan to see if we can get a hit off facial recognition."

Castle retrieved Kate's cell from the table on her side of their bed and rushed to send off the pictures as soon as he'd given it to her. "Espo's going to have someone here within five minutes, and he's coming over himself." Kate reported when Castle rejoined her. "I hope this guy doesn't wander off before then."

Castle stared downward at the figure. "I doubt it. He's probably watching you Kate, looking for a chance to take you out. He knows you saw him. Are you sure he can't shoot you through the window?"

"He doesn't have a rifle, Castle, and even if he has a handgun, the trajectory's all wrong. The bullet wouldn't reach this high. We'll be fine until the unit and Espo get here."

It was obvious that Esposito had dressed at high speed. There was stubble on his jawline and his shirt was partially untucked. Neither Beckett nor Castle had dressed at all. She refused to leave her post at the window and after quickly donning a robe, Castle brought one to Kate and stayed in front of the glass with her. After a late night studying lines, Martha was still in her room and the aroma of coffee started by a sleepy Alexis had just begun to permeate the air.

* * *

Esposito regarded the suspect still loitering across the way. "That blue car at the end of the block is a surveillance unit. Beckett, we could pull him in right now. You witnessed him committing a murder."

"Espo, it wouldn't stick. I haven't picked him out of a line-up. It would be his word against mine. And all I really saw was a guy fiddling with an IV. I never saw him inject the morphine. There are no fingerprints, no forensic evidence except for the presence of a drug Raglan was already taking. Unless you guys got something from the video or the canvass, there's nothing to back up my story. We need to keep people on him. We need to find out who he is and tie him to whoever ordered Raglan's murder - and probably my mother's. Do we still have people on McCallister?" Esposito nodded. "Good. This guy may try to contact him - or kill him. Either way we'll have a connection. Now I need to get to the precinct, and we need a unit to make sure Alexis gets to school safely. Bring in a guard named Perkins. He's the mole at Rikers and I may have a link to whoever is pulling his strings."

Esposito's eyebrows shot up. "How did you manage that?"

"Kate smiled, shaking her head. "If I don't tell you, you have nothing to hide."

Esposito regarded Castle who turned his eyes to the ceiling in a failed attempt to appear innocent. "Ri-i-ght."

Kate pulled on the first clothes she laid her hands on, as did Castle. Either by shared brain or happenstance they had both chosen red shirts, blue pants, and blue blazers. Esposito snorted when he saw them. "You look like ringers in the bell choir at my cousin's church. Unless you two want to rethink your outfits, let's go."

Kate rolled her eyes. "Espo, right now clothes are the last thing on my mind." Beckett took shotgun as Esposito slid behind the wheel of the unit he shared with Ryan. Castle folded himself into the backseat without his characteristic complaint regarding the lack of legroom and Esposito's heavy foot brought them to the precinct in less than five minutes.

Ryan met them at the elevator. "Bad news. The unis you asked me to send to get that guard Perkins, they just found him - dead."

"Hey, go! Go!" Beckett urged Ryan and Esposito. "I'll be fine here slogging through paper."

"So what do we do?" Castle asked after the elevator doors closed on the partners.

"Perkins is dead. I can get a warrant for anything I want to investigate his death. We should do everything we can to run down that friend of his in D.C. Tanu found. I'm also going to stay on top of the team on McCallister. There may be someone after him too. Whoever the big guy is, he may have more than one hitter out there, or McCallister may just try to get in touch with him. Either way we need constant eyes on McCallister. I need to check with tech to see if anything has popped on facial recognition for our morning visitor too. You can help if you work with Tanu's file."

"I'm on it," Castle agreed and took up a station at Ryan's desk.

"Kate," Castle called after an hour of intensive study of his computer screen. "You remember Pulgatti said something about a hot shot district attorney who forced him to take a deal?"

Beckett came to look over his shoulder. "Yeah Castle, what about him?"

"He's a senator now, and Perkins' friend in D.C. works for him. He went from D.A. to congressman and funded his campaign with money of mysterious origins. Then he went from there to being a senator. He chairs several committees, wields a lot of power. He could be the one behind the killings. It certainly fits."

"That's a pretty big leap, Castle. A United States Senator?"

"Kate you'd need someone with that much power to do what our guy did, what he's still doing. What else would make sense?"

"I don't know, Castle. Who is it?"

Castle brought up a smugly smiling face on his monitor. Senator Bracken, William H. Bracken."

"Oh God, Castle. I remember my mom talking about him, how he was too quick on the trigger to force deals on suspects who had no resources to fight him. They hated each other, Castle. He could easily have sent Coonan to stick that knife in her back."

Castle stood, pulling Kate into his arms. "And he might send someone to stick a knife in yours. He may already have."


	46. Chapter 46

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 46

Kate pressed her head against Castle's shoulder for comfort. "How do we get to a Senator? Maybe we can get the faux nurse, but Bracken can just send someone else, like he sent Coonan."

"Kate if I were writing the story, this would be my narrative: hot shot D.A. somehow twigs to dirty cop vigilantes. He agrees to pin Armen's death on Pulgatti but blackmails them for their ransoms and then uses the money to fund his congressional campaign. He hates your mother anyway, so when she gets too close to uncovering what really happened to Armen, he sends Coonan to take her and everyone she's involved in the case out. When McCallister tips him off that Raglan's gonna spill, he has him taken out too. Then he runs clean-up. He takes out McCallister and the cop who's getting too close to the truth - you. If we're going to get him, we have to find a trail he can't wipe out - the money trail. That ransom money ended up somewhere that can be tied to Bracken and we have to find it. So who would know about the money?"

"McCallister," Kate realized. "If something was taken from him, he'd have an idea where it went. Damn! I wish we could go see him. He wouldn't have a chance to put a story together. But I'll have him brought in."

Beckett dispensed with any appearance of professional courtesy and had L.T. stow McCallister in the box. She glared at him across the table. "You and Raglan had quite a racket going."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," McCallister insisted.

Beckett sighed and shook her head. "Are we really going to play that game? You two made yourself out as masked crusaders. You went after the bad guys, beat them up and squeezed them for ransom. But you rent an apartment in a crappy neighborhood. Your clothes are at least five years old. Where did the money go, McCallister? Who found out about Pulgatti? Who squeezed you?"

Raglan sagged in his chair. "You don't understand what things were like back then. The families were at war. A lot of places, you couldn't walk down the street. Things were out of control. Me and Raglan, we did something. Yeah we grabbed those guys and tuned them up and then we incarcerated them. But we couldn't hold them forever, so we set bail and we set it high. The guy you're after, somehow he found out and he took over. He made sure we didn't go down for Armen, but he took everything. Then he moved out, but he still kept a leash on us - tight. John thought if he told the story he could find some kind of redemption, but he just got sent straight to hell. I give you a name, I'll join him. You don't get it. The man is untouchable. You go after him, he'll take you out too."

"Not if I take him out first," Beckett returned. "I already have a name, William Bracken, and my guess is he's going to think you gave it to us. If you want to have a prayer of living much longer than Raglan did, you'll tell us everything you know so we can protect you."

McCallister desperately wished for the flask L.T. had taken from him before he was consigned to interrogation. "Alright. You have the right name. It was Bracken. He sent Coonan after your mother."

Beckett pushed a copy of the photo she'd taken from the window of the loft across the table. "Who's this?"

McCallister stared at the image. "I don't know, I've never seen him before. Is that who killed Raglan?"

Beckett ignored the question and pushed over a pad of paper. "You are going to write down everything you know about your operation and about Bracken. Then some officers will accompany you to your apartment or anywhere else where you have anything connected to Bracken and collect it. After that, we'll talk about a safe house until we take Bracken down."

A tech knocked on the window of interrogation and Beckett and Castle met him outside the room. "We couldn't get a match on facial recognition, but there was a tattoo in the photos you took. The resolution wasn't high enough to identify it, but it looked military. He wasn't in their regular data base, but if he was black ops, we wouldn't have access to that information."

"Thanks Lee," Beckett responded. "Castle, have you got a guy?"

"Unfortunately, for once, no, but Espo's always talking about his black ops exploits. He might have someone."

"Yeah, he and Ryan should be getting back from the Perkins crime scene any time. I'll see what he's got."

* * *

The man wore no uniform, but everything about him from the closely cropped hair, to the eyes forever on alert, screamed military. Esposito took the bar stool next to him and ordered beer for both of them. "How's it goin' Ray?"

Ray took a sip of his beer. "Not exactly an adrenaline rush, Javi. I had to ditch the uniform before I could come in here, but they have me in recruiting. They're capitalizing on my bum knee, and I emphasize the limp a little. You know, stalwart hero, wounded in battle. Put me in camo and it's a great image."

"Probably not so great if they found out you got it tripping over a drunk comrade on your way back from a hot night in Kabul." Esposito offered.

"Yeah, probably not," Ray agreed. "What brings you here? This isn't exactly a cop bar."

"Well I thought you might want to get a little bit of your rush back." Esposito passed him a photo. "I need an ID on this guy and prints in case he's traveling under another name. He killed a cop and he may be after a friend of mine. Pretty sure he's military, but classified. The techs at the N.Y.P.D. can't get in to the right computer to find him, but you can."

"Javi, man, you know I'm always there for a brother, but if they find out, I could lose my job, my benefits, my medical, everything. I've only got a couple more years to go before I've got my twenty and I've got Mandy and the kids to think of. I can't screw that up."

Esposito passed over a laptop concealed in a canvas bag. "No one's going to find out, bro. I got this from a liquidator, paid cash. There's no record. You use it to get online from some untraceable IP address, then destroy the hard drive. Look man, I took a bullet for you. If I hadn't, there'd be no Mandy, no kids. You owe me."

"Fine," Ray agreed, "but I do this, we're even. The only other thing I do for you is take my turn buying the beer."

Esposito nodded and laid money on the bar. "I'll be in touch."

* * *

Esposito met Beckett and Castle at the loft. "I've got our boy. Facial's not a 100% match. It looks like he may have had a remodel. But the height, build are the same. Eye color matches. The army had him as Colin Maxwell. He was a dark ops sniper, but the army dropped him for psych reasons. He liked his job too much. Apparently he's found an employer who appreciates his love for the work. There's nothing in our data bases under that name, but I ran the prints the army has on file, got a hit on the thumb print from the DMV. He's going under Hal Lockwood. DMV photo matches. Credit history's about two years old and I tagged his cards."

"Espo how?" Beckett queried.

Esposito winked. "If I don't tell you, you have nothing to hide."

A/N I am happy to answer questions, but if you sign in as a guest, I can't, except as an A/N and that may be a spoiler for a reader who doesn't want to know. Also, while I usually know the beginnings and ends of the stories, sometimes I have no idea about the in-betweens until they come out of my fingers. I've also changed my mind about endings more than once, especially if something interesting popped up on the show or even in the news. So if you want something specific, get an account and ask me. If I actually have an answer, I'll tell you via PM.


	47. Chapter 47

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 47

The boxes, holding every scrap of paper from Raglan's and McCallister's apartments and storage compartments, filled the conference room. Beckett and Castle sifted carefully through every piece. Most of it held nothing useful, although Kate did get a kick out of some old fantasy baseball records. Castle began to dig into a set of banker's boxes, neatly organized and labeled in a handwriting that was neither Raglan's or McCallister's. "I wonder if these belonged to Raglan's wife?" Castle mused. "She died five years ago and McCallister said Raglan just put all her things in storage without even looking at them. Seems like she kept the family books." Castle lifted a lid and opened a file. "Kate, I think this is it. These are copies of money orders sent to an account. I'm willing to bet when we trace the account owner it will be Bracken or something tied to him."

Ryan opened the door. "Hey, Lockwood just used a credit card for corporate housing uptown. Surveillance confirms he's there. With Beckett's statement and Lockwood's history, Judge Markaway gave us a warrant. Javi and I are going after him."

"Can I come?" Castle asked.

"Castle, no," Kate urged. "The man's a stone killer. Ryan and Esposito need an ESU squad. Lockwood could take you out even with your vest. He's good enough to put a bullet in your head."

"I'll stay back. Really," Castle promised. "I have no wish to leave Alexis or our child fatherless. But we should be in on the take down and you can't go. Let me be your surrogate."

"Your call, Beckett," Ryan said.

Kate chewed her lip. "Okay, but Castle, you don't go near the building or even within shouting distance of Lockwood until he's in cuffs. Tell me!"

"I won't go near the building or within shouting distance of Lockwood until he's in cuffs," Castle repeated.

Castle stood next to the ESU van grasping his phone with Beckett on FaceTime. He watched as Esposito led a group of fully armored men through the front entrance of the building while Ryan led another group from the back. "Are they sure Lockwood's in the building?" Kate asked.

"The clerk said he checked in, but he wasn't sure Lockwood is in his suite. ESU doesn't have the fancy equipment the FBI does to get a heat signature, so Ryan and Esposito are winging it," Castle replied nervously. "They've got people ringing the place. If he's here, he can't get out without being seen. Oh! Did you hear that? It sounded like a flash bang."

"Castle, what do you see?" Beckett demanded.

"Nothing. I don't know if the bang came from our guys or from Lockwood." Castle moved closer to the building. "Wait, it looks like someone's coming out. It's Espo, and he's got Lockwood. Looks like everyone's all right. They're coming this way." Castle turned his phone so Kate could see Esposito shove Lockwood into the back of a blue and white.

* * *

Lockwood lounged in his chair in interrogation looking way too comfortable. "You people have nothing."

"You killed John Raglan," Beckett spat at him. "I saw you in his room."

Lockwood smiled smugly. "I'd love to see you prove that, sweetheart."

"I'm not your sweetheart," Beckett retorted as Castle's eyes darkened in anger.

"And you're living under a false identity," Castle added.

"Well unless you can prove that I'm doing it for the purposes of committing theft or fraud, that's not much of a crime," Lockwood responded. "I've had a traumatic history and I wanted to start fresh."

Castle snorted. "You inflicted traumas. You didn't suffer them."

Lockwood was untroubled. "Go ahead, have me arraigned. I'll be out five minutes after you do. Now I'm invoking my right to not to waste my time talking to you anymore and I'd like to call my lawyer."

"Do you think he's right?" Castle asked Beckett as Lockwood was led off to a holding cell.

"That we need more evidence to convict him? Yeah, unless I can really impress a jury. That he'll be out on bail, I don't know. Living under an assumed name should be evidence of a flight risk. It will all depend on how good his lawyer is. If the lawyer is one of Bracken's people, or Bracken brings enough pressure to bear, he could be out. But we'll drag out the paperwork as long as possible. Prisoners can get lost at Central Booking. I have a friend there, Casey."

Castle grinned. "So you have a guy too. Should I be jealous?"

"Actually, Castle, Casey's a woman, and I think by now you know which way I swing."

Castle placed a hand on her rounded belly. "I certainly hope so.

"You know we still have a room full of records to finish going through and we need to trace down the account you found."

"Alright," Castle agreed. "I'll read, you can trace."

Castle had skimmed the last of Mrs. Raglan's records and Beckett was at her desk finishing up the last of the steps required to receive a password to the International Banking Database when her cell buzzed. White-faced, Kate rejoined Castle in the conference room. Castle looked up and instantly sprang from his chair to grab her arm. "What's wrong?"

"Castle, Casey just called. A guard went to get Lockwood to move him around. He found him sitting propped up in the corner of a cell with his eyes closed. At first the guard thought he was just being defiant when he refused to get up. The guard shook him and Lockwood fell over. He'd been stabbed very professionally, just a couple of small puncture wounds with hardly any blood on his shirt. He's dead, Castle. No one saw anything. No one heard anything. Lanie will have to tell us for sure, but it looked to the medic at the prison as if he died from internal blood loss. Bracken didn't need to expend the resources to get him out. He just had him taken out."

"And Bracken has another killer out there.," Castle added grimly.

Beckett chewed her lip and nodded her agreement. "It could have been a prisoner, a guard, maybe even a cop coming through. We'll scrub the video but we probably won't find anything more than Ryan found at the hospital. Bracken could have a well trained army of assassins just ready to do his bidding. One of them could be anywhere, anytime. And we'll never see him coming."

"Oh Kate, we'll see him alright, because until we take that monster down, you're here in the precinct or you're in the loft. No one gets near you we're not sure we can trust, even if this time I do have to hire a commando or two."

Kate reached for the enfolding warmth of Castle's hand. "You know Babe, that idea's gone from sounding ludicrous to not sounding half bad, as long as you get Tanu or Esposito to background check the commandos. But that makes what we're doing even more important. We need to finish tracing the money, nail Bracken and cut off the flow. Whoever Bracken has out there won't work if Bracken can't pay. Soon as that password comes through we'll pick up a trail that's more than bread crumbs."


	48. Chapter 48

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 48

Beckett pointed at the screen in triumph. "There it is, Castle. The account number those money orders were sent to belonged to William H. Bracken. Now we have a direct connection with a murder - two murders if you count Lockwood. We can subpoena the bank records and unravel Bracken's web."

"Kate, those records are at least eighteen years old. Look at the name of the bank: First Trenton. It's been bought and sold at least three times since then. If those records still exist, who knows where they are? And Bracken probably shifted his banking to the Cayman Islands as soon as his operation really took off. There may not be much to find," Castle cautioned.

"Castle, he was dumb enough not to start in the Caymans. That means he made mistakes. And if he made mistakes, we can get him," Kate asserted. "Our first step will be to find those records. Back then they would have been on paper and banks are like the N.Y.P.D., paper is always stored somewhere."

"Okay then," Castle acceded, "get your subpoena and we'll find them together."

* * *

"The bank had to store their records in Minnesota?" Castle groaned as Beckett reached up to secure his scarf more tightly around his neck. They walked from their rental car to a large warehouse. "Thanks. Aren't you cold?"

"Castle, from the way you have to retrieve the covers every night, I'd think you'd know by now I'm warm. I'm always warm these days. A little gift from my passenger. But this is pretty cold even for Minnesota. I read they've had ten straight days below zero."

"Yeah, I can tell by the frost on my nose hair. That and the snuggie the rental car company gave us for the battery. At least I don't have to disconnect a sixty pound hunk of metal and bring it in with us. I remember some skiing weekends when I was in college when I had to do just that. I had a special place in the corner for it. I called it Sparky." Clouds of white flowed from Kate's mouth as she laughed. "Hey, there's nothing funny about being stuck on a freezing mountain with a dead battery," Castle protested. "Been there, done that too. So whom are we supposed to be meeting here, anyway?"

"The Facilities Manager, Lars Andersen. He'll show us the general area where the records we're looking for are stored, but they're stored by year, so we'll have to plow through them to find Bracken's account number. Otherwise we'd have to wait for the bank to assign people to do it and who knows how long that would take? At least Montgomery didn't grumble about letting me come out here."

"Why would he?" Castle responded. "This is the ultimate in paperwork and I'm picking up our airfare and hotel."

"The N.Y.P.D. would have paid for me," Kate pointed out, "just not first class and five star."

"Pregnant ladies should never be consigned to less than the best," Castle declared, "especially if they're traveling with me."

They were hailed by a hearty man with pale blue eyes, and paler blond hair. "You folks are taking on a job, I can tell you." He led the way into the building and down wide aisles between tall metal shelves filled with banker's boxes. Finally he climbed into a forklift and used it to retrieve several pallets of boxes from above. "All yours," he announced, after setting the last one down by a metal work table. He pointed back toward the entrance. "There's a little break room up there with coffee, a microwave, and some vending machines. The restroom is right next to it. My desk is up there too. Just let me know when you're finished so I can put things back. Good luck to you."

Having made it through half of the first pallet with multiple paper cuts and no relevant records, Castle surveyed the contents of the vending machines for something to feed his increasingly grouchy fiancée. He had no doubt in his mind that she needed chocolate - and quickly. He found a bar and some giant chocolate chip cookies. He paired them with decaf he was surprised but relieved to find, and brought them back to her. She was rubbing her neck, kinked from bending over files. He replaced her hands with his own. "I'll do that, you feed our offspring."

Kate crunched down on a cookie and waved a hand at two still untouched pallets. "Castle, we could be here for days."

Castle could feel her muscles re-tightening under his fingers even as he released the knots. "Maybe we'll get lucky. If not, there were delivery menus on the bulletin board in the break room. We can order in. We can have a picnic with concrete instead of grass and shelves instead of trees. It could be an urbanite version of fun."

Kate stuffed the rest of a cookie in her mouth and broke off a square of dark chocolate. "Sounds different, Castle, at least there wouldn't be any ants."

"Indeed an upside," Castle agreed, "their nests are probably frozen solid out there."

Castle was many hours past pizza and contemplating ordering Chinese, when the name and number he'd been searching for jumped out before his eyes. He pulled out several sheets of paper and brought them to Beckett. Her eyes flashed with excitement as she took in the letters and numbers on the pages. "This is it, Castle! The money Bracken took in and where he spent it the year my mother was killed, and there's a payment here from Raglan making it relevant to our case. Grabbing his head with both hands she brought his lips to hers.

The moment held until they were both gasping for breath. "Wow!" Castle exclaimed when he'd refilled his lungs. "If reading bank statements has that effect on you, from now on I'm going to keep mine in the bedroom. So are you ready to get out of here and find something to eat that doesn't arrive in paper or cardboard?"

Kate bounced from her chair. "Absolutely!"

* * *

Kate stared into the flames of the wood burning fireplace in the rustic hotel restaurant, as she savored the last of the aromatic comfort the menu called stew. She settled back in her chair, her eyelids drifting shut. "Tired?" Castle asked. "It's been a long day."

Kate opened her eyes again to meet his. "No. Just enjoying the moment. You? As fast as you read, you probably went through twice as many files as I did."

"No, energized actually. We have a real trail to follow now and you know how that turns me on."

Kate's mouth curled up mischievously as she leaned across the table and ran her fingertips over his lips. "Just how turned on are you?"

Castle shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Enough to make sure my coat is securely buttoned all the way down before I stand up to escort you to the charmingly over-sized bed in our suite."

Holding his gaze, and shielded by the drape of the table cloth, Kate ran the toe of her leather boot up his leg in invitation. "Then I guess it's a good thing you've already signed the check."


	49. Chapter 49

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 49

Beckett looked up from her terminal. "Castle, this is amazing, a lot of the payments to Bracken trace back to cops who graduated from the academy with Raglan and McCallister. I wish we could go to McCallister's safe house and get the lowdown, but even if Montgomery allowed it, if we weren't spotted, my security detail probably would be."

Castle gazed at her in loving indulgence. "It is the twenty-first century, Kate. Call one of Raglan's keepers. You can Skype."

"Not the same as being able to watch every shifty move of his body, but better than nothing," Beckett agreed.

McCallister was on the large screen in the tech room. Castle stood behind Beckett's chair as she looked up at the disgraced cop.

"Yeah, all those guys became part of the band," McCallister admitted. "Bracken had us recruit them. He let them keep a little of the money. Mostly they enjoyed going after guys we couldn't collar under the official rules. They were like John and me. They thought they were doing a good thing for the city while they were really lining Bracken's pockets. I don't know if any of them actually knew who he was, just someone working behind the scenes to keep them from being busted for kidnapping and extortion."

"But some of them might?" Beckett pressed.

"It's possible," McCallister responded, "there weren't many people in a position to do what he did in those days. They might have figured it out. If they did, they never said."

"Not too helpful," Castle commented after the screen went dark.

"There's one guy on this list who's still on active duty, Elvin Slagle, Captain of the twenty-third. The scuttlebutt is that he's a little too fond of the bottle, but he's smart. He's got almost as good a closure rate as we do. If anyone figured it out, it's probably him. We could have Montgomery request a meeting, captain to captain," Kate proposed.

Castle nodded. "Like Star Trek Generations, Kirk and Picard."

Beckett laughed. "With a lot less drama than Shatner and Stewart."

* * *

Elvin Slagle was watchful and guarded as he sat in Montgomery's office. Montgomery had hidden a microphone behind his portrait of Obama allowing Beckett, Castle, Ryan, and Esposito to listen in on the conversation from the conference room. "I was sorry to hear about John and surprised that he was murdered. I won't shed any tears for the perp, but isn't the case closed? I don't know what I can help you with."

"Actually," Montgomery informed him, "we're looking for the man who hired Lockwood to take Raglan out. We believe it was due to activities Raglan indulged in eighteen years ago. You guys hung out back then, didn't you?"

"We had a few drinks together now and then." Slagle confirmed.

"Did you have the same bookie?" Montgomery asked.

Slagle stared at him. "Raglan liked betting on the horses and football but I was never interested in that kind of thing. I had a wife and kid to support. I couldn't throw my money away. Why?"

"We've been following a financial trail and you and Raglan made payments to the same account - large payments. I was just wondering why you'd do that."

Slagle jumped from his chair forcefully enough that it crashed to the floor. "I don't know what you're trying to imply, but I can't say I enjoy being ambushed. This meeting is over!"

Slagle stormed to the elevator.

Montgomery stuck his head in the conference room. "You got all that?"

Four heads nodded.

"You got someone on him?"

"Captain, we figured he'd make a cop," Ryan explained, "but Castle has one of the men he uses for private security following Slagle. If he makes a move we'll know about it."

* * *

Slagle bent over his third scotch. Things he thought he had long buried were catching up to him. To make matters worse, most of the space and air at the bar were being taken up by a huge Samoan who cheered loudly at every basket scored by the Knicks. A man in a cashmere coat took a seat beside Slagle and ordered a Jameson straight. "You weren't supposed to try to contact him."

"Well then he shouldn't have taken out Raglan. The man was dying anyway. Now the Twelfth has the case of a murdered cop and they're not letting it go. I don't know how, but they found my payments to your boss. McCallister's disappeared and the rumor is he's stashed somewhere. I wouldn't be surprised if they knew about everything Raglan, McCallister, all of us did. And it all leads back to your boss. How's he going to make it go away? How many more people can he have killed?"

"You'd be surprised," Cashmere Coat replied, "as many as it takes. But he has another plan. Sit tight. He has it handled." The man threw money on the bar and walked away as the Samoan howled over a missed three pointer.

"It doesn't sound good, Rick," Tanu reported. "Something bad is going down. Something big. I have guys on your loft and someone outside the precinct, but I have a feeling this sh*t is going to roll down a whole other hill. You and your lady, the cops you work with, better watch your backs, fronts, and sides." Rick hung up his cell as men carrying empty boxes poured out of the elevator following a suit with a captain's badge.

Montgomery peered out of his office. "Captain Donovan, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Captain Montgomery," I'm here to inform you that the Raglan case and everything connected to it has now become a matter for IAD. It would appear that your detectives have uncovered widespread corruption that took place and may still be taking place within the department. Yet neither they nor you saw fit to notify us. That is unacceptable. We will be collecting any and all materials pertaining to the case. You and your people are banned from investigating anything connected with Raglan's murder. If you or anyone else under your command continues to pursue it, disciplinary actions including suspension and termination will be taken. Now direct my men to the appropriate files."

Beckett watched in horrified disbelief as Donovan's men overran the bullpen and the conference room, seizing the evidence she, Castle, and the boys had worked so hard to gather. "Castle, Bracken has got to be behind this. I heard rumors before about Donovan, and this just confirms what I heard. Donovan is dirty and Bracken must be pulling his strings. He'll bury or lose everything in IAD until Bracken has a chance to completely cover his tracks."

"Not everything," Castle said. "You know how I love to 'borrow' evidence. I've been making copies of everything important, especially the bank records. I have them on the computer in the loft and there's another set with Tanu for safekeeping."

"Castle, if we weren't surrounded by Donovan's minions, I'd kiss you."

Castle squeezed her hand. "Just hold that thought for later."


	50. Chapter 50

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 50

The senior partner in the O.B. Practice, Dr. Gale, looked solemn as Kate and Castle sat on the edges of the chairs in front of her desk. "Kate, you were smart to come in when you started spotting. The ultrasound showed the growth of the baby has slowed down. I can't see any detachments or deformities, but I need to run some tests to see what's going on. I'm going to to analyze the blood I took from you. There will be some cells from the baby in there. We'll look at them and at the DNA and see if any abnormalities show up. In the meantime, I want you on bed rest. That means you get up only to use the bathroom and even with that you move around as little as possible. Obviously, that means taking time off work. That may be short or long term, depending on what we find."

With his arm around Kate, Castle led her to the car. She twisted and untwisted her fingers as he drove. "Castle, could this have come at a worse time?"

"Kate, it's not like there could have been a good time. We'll deal with it, whatever happens, just like we dealt with my illness. But you know, there might be a silver lining."

"Castle, how could there possibly be a silver lining to having something wrong with our baby?"

"Not with that, although whatever it is, we'll get it fixed. We fixed me and that was supposed to be impossible. Whatever it takes, we'll find a way. I meant that with you being confined, we have the perfect excuse to stay at the loft. We have the files and we can work on the case without anyone being the wiser. Donovan will never know a thing. I'll just bring everything to you in bed. I can do the legwork and get Tanu and his guys to help me if I need them. When we get things figured out, Bracken will never know what hit him."

"And how do I bring a case without being fired?" Kate asked.

"You don't. I do, as a private citizen. IAD has no jurisdiction over me. I don't work for the N.Y.P.D.. When we have it all together I can take it to Markaway or the press or maybe even to Jordan Shaw or your old pal Sorenson. But right now we'll get you home and tucked in. I'm good at that. I've had a lot of practice. I might even get you a stuffed animal or two."

"How about Donovan's head on a platter?"

Castle's smile almost reached his eyes. "That's the bloodthirsty Kate Beckett I know. I'm sure when we track down Bracken's connections we'll get him too."

"Oh Castle, what about the wedding plans?" Kate wondered. "There's still so much to do and we let everything slide with this case."

"Not a problem," Castle assured her. "That's what wedding planners are for. We've got the important stuff like the venue, the guest list, and the catering done. And you've got your dress. Someone else can deal with napkins and flowers and if necessary bring things to your bedside for your approval. And if I have to carry you down the aisle, I will."

Kate reached for his hand. "Castle, no matter what happens you look for an upside. This is why I love you so much."

"How about my ruggedly handsome face and impressive biceps?" Castle queried.

"Those don't hurt either."

* * *

Kate was willing to lie on the bed, but with a laptop, not a stuffed animal. Castle got her settled and excused himself to go make a snack. As soon as he was out of the range of Kate's hearing he pulled out his phone to call Morris, hoping that he wouldn't get voice mail. Morris answered on the first ring. "Mr. Castle, I was just proofing a paper about your case."

"Doctor you might have to add an appendix."

"Why? Are you having another relapse?" Morris questioned.

"No, I'm fine, but Kate is pregnant with our child and it looks like there are complications. I was wondering if my illness might have been involved in some way." Morris was silent. "Doctor?"

"I would hope not," Morris replied but your vampire virus did have the capability of inserting genes. Usually such things don't impact sperm, at least not long term, but with this virus the long term effects are largely unknown. You did make mention of some transmission to offspring in affected families, so anything is possible. Are blood tests being done on Ms. Beckett?"

"They are," Castle confirmed.

"If the tests reveal something out of the ordinary, her doctor can call me for a consult. But Mr. Castle, in medicine we're always saying when you hear hoof beats, think horses, not zebras. Now personally, I love zebras, they're much more interesting. But for the sake of the child I hope it's a horse, and an easily tamable one."

"Thank you, Doctor," Castle replied, "so do I."

Castle put away his phone and began slicing fruit and cheese to share with Kate.

* * *

Castle bent over his own computer. The people Bracken had sent funds to had proved to be remarkably uninteresting, consisting mostly of political operatives who worked to launch his congressional campaign. If there was a payment to Jack Coonan, Castle couldn't find it. He wondered if Kate would have more luck. What did peak his interest was a series of incoming payments not associated with vigilante cops. The money passed through a web of businesses, seemingly legitimate, but having no reason to pay a New York District Attorney. It looked to Castle like classic money laundering, but he couldn't find the source of the dirt. One of the businesses was still in existence: Car Stars, a body shop specializing in the restoration and customization of classic cars. He decided to pay them a visit, but first he'd need a prop.

Though Kate vociferously denied the need for any such person, Castle enlisted the help of a home healthcare aid to take care of her while he took care of business. Business involved interviewing wedding planners and a visit to Black Pawn. It also involved visiting a car auction to pick up a salvage vehicle he could take in for extensive and expensive repairs. Castle was almost giddy to find a banged up third generation Pontiac Trans Am. He happily topped the other bidders and arranged to have it towed to Car Stars. "I wonder if they'll install oscillating red lights on the front," he mused idly. "Even if I don't pull some threads of Bracken's web, I can have my own Kitt. Maybe I can even get William Daniel's voice for the GPS. Car Stars will just have to figure out how to put in a baby seat." Thoughts of the baby chilled his mood like ice water. A baby seat could be the least of their problems. Dr. Gale said it would be at least a couple of days before she had definitive results on Kate's blood work. Those would be very long days. For Castle, work on the case would be a welcome distraction.


	51. Chapter 51

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 51

Castle strolled around Car Stars, ostensibly to check on the progress of the restoration and customization of his Trans Am. Without a father to turn him on to American heavy metal, there wasn't much to interest him in the work areas except for some cool electronics, but he wasn't there about the cars. He observed the employees, scanned the bulletin board and looked for any signs of a connection with Bracken. After asking to use the rest room, he wandered into a hall near the back offices. A voice rumbled from behind a door, a voice he'd last heard sneeringly taunting Kate, the voice of Vulcan Simmons. Castle's stomach clenched.

* * *

"Are you sure it was Vulcan Simmons?" Beckett asked as Castle delivered his news from a perch on the edge of the bed.

"Of course I'm sure," Castle insisted. "I could never forget that voice. Could you? Kate, it all makes sense. Bracken was getting money from the cops, sure. But he was a crooked D.A.. We know that. It takes a lot of money to pay for murders, especially professionally done murders. Your mother and her colleagues alone would have cost him half a mil and I'm sure there were others. And political campaigns can take millions. We've seen what he got from the cops. It wouldn't have been enough for all that. But money from the drug trade, that would have topped off his coffers nicely. It probably still does. Senatorial campaigns are expensive too and word is he's being groomed to run for president. Drug money could be pouring into his war chest."

"But Castle, even if that's true, how do we trace it down? We can't use the resources from the precinct. Donovan would find out."

"Didn't Ryan come from narcotics?"

Kate nodded.

"Do you trust him? Because Kate if you do, we can ask him to put out some feelers to old friends. All we need to know is where Vulcan Simmons is doing business besides Car Stars. Then we can sic Tanu on those fronts. That much money can't be moved without leaving some kind of a trail. We just have to uncover it."

"Castle," Kate added excitedly, "If we can prove a connection to organized criminal activity, it won't be just be the Raglan murder anymore. We can go after Bracken for racketeering under the R.I.C.O. laws. That will give us an entree into the F.B.I. and open all his activities up to the light of day. I'm calling Ryan right now."

Kate was about to put her phone away after Ryan cautiously agreed to her request, when it chimed an incoming call. She looked up at Castle, biting her lip. "It's Dr. Gale." Kate thumbed the icon to put the call on speaker.

"Kate, I have the preliminary results from your tests. The baby has a factor in its blood we've never seen before. It's provoking an immune reaction from you. Your antibodies are causing the baby's blood to break down. Do you know of anything in your medical history that might have contributed to something like this? An exotic viral illness perhaps?"

"No, not that I can think of," Kate replied confused.

"There is in mine," Castle interjected. "I was afraid of this. I believe the father is at fault here Doctor, not the mother. If you contact Dr. Morris at the School of Public Health at Columbia, he can explain. I'll text you his numbers and email. He won't be surprised at your call."

"Alright Mr. Castle," Gale agreed. "Kate, after I talk to Dr. Morris, I'll get back to you with a plan of attack for treatment. Try to relax until then."

Kate thumbed the phone off. "Relax! Castle, is she kidding? You obviously know something. What's this all about? What does it have to do with Morris?"

"Kate, I talked to him after we saw Dr. Gale. He didn't think it was likely, but he thought there was a chance what's happening to the baby might be related to my vampire virus. We were both hoping it would turn out to be something more mundane and easily treatable. I guess the signature Castle black cloud continues to dump on us - and the baby. I am so sorry."

"Castle, this isn't your fault. You didn't ask for that virus - or the hell you went through to cure it. You didn't even know I could get pregnant. We both believed I was safe. So just forget the guilt. We'll do whatever we have to do, just like always. We'll be all right, all three of us." Kate's body stiffened as he drew her to him. "Castle we shouldn't, not with the baby..."

"We're not," Castle assured her. "I just want to hold you. I need to feel the life of both of you in my arms right now."

* * *

Ryan's knock on the loft door came before a call back from Dr. Gale. "Got a line on several businesses around the city that are fronts for Vulcan Simmons' operations," he told Castle. "IAD is monitoring my email, so I brought you a list." He handed Castle a file. "Everyone in the bullpen is running scared, afraid Donovan will pounce. Montgomery is staying in his office. He isn't even taking his regular coffee breaks. I hope this drug angle is the handle we need to take Bracken down and Donovan with him."

"We hope so too, Ryan. I'll get my guys on this," Castle promised. "Donovan will never get near any of it."

"How's Beckett?"

"Trying to rest, but ready to jump out of her skin. We're hoping for some news soon."

"Yeah, well Espo said to tell her that Lanie sends her love and says if Kate doesn't answer her calls soon, she's coming over here to smack some sense into her."

Castle chuckled at the image of the medical examiner facing off with Beckett. "I'll deliver the message. Thanks bro."

Ryan put a hand on the door to leave. "No problem Castle, just take care of Beckett and the baby." He closed the door softly behind him.

Castle checked on Kate, who was tossing restlessly in a light sleep. He gently smoothed the sweat dampened hair from her face and pressed a light kiss to her forehead. Then removing several sheets of paper from Ryan's folder, he scanned them and attached the file to an email to Tanu. Just to make sure the Samoan would see them, he also sent a text.

There was nothing to do but wait for Dr. Gale's call. Castle could chase after murderers and drug dealers, but right now, nothing was more important than Kate and the baby. Castle poured the first of several scotches and sat on the couch with both his phone and Beckett's at his side. He waited helplessly for one of them to ring.

A/N I put up a new Con Man story yesterday. Now that I've seen a bunch of episodes, the characters are much truer to Alan Tudyk's vision than they were in the stories I wrote before Con Man actually came out. My Con Man stories are hard to find on this site because there is no Con Man listing. They're under, Misc., Misc. TV.. They're also on my profile page. The new story is called Wray's Angel. Wray thinks he's met his perfect woman but... I did tweet about the story and post it on the Con Man Facebook page.


	52. Chapter 52

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 52

Castle insisted on carrying Kate down to the Mercedes and settling her into a fully reclined seat for the trip to Dr. Gale's office. As much as he enjoyed having her in his arms, by the time they got to the car he was grateful for the heated lumbar support in his own seat. Dr. Gale greeted them with an encouraging look as she waved them to their chairs. "Dr. Morris and I have developed a plan of action. In many ways Kate's case is similar to what happens with an Rh+ baby and an Rh- mother. The mother responds to a foreign protein on the surface of the baby's blood cells. There are well developed protocols for treating Rh incompatibility. If the situation is caught early, the mother can be given a shot to prevent her immune system from damaging the baby's blood, but once damage begins, it's too late for that type of an intervention and other treatments must be employed. Even if we had been aware of your situation earlier, there is no shot for your baby's foreign protein. We have two other avenues. One is an intrauterine transfusion and delivery as early as possible. The other is using a partial antibody that will block the foreign factor from attack by Kate's immune system, but will not cause damage in itself. At present no such antibody exists, but it can be created. We want to keep that baby developing inside Mom as long as we can, so what I'm proposing, and Dr. Morris concurs, is that we do the transfusion to protect the baby for the moment. It will not take you through the entire pregnancy, but it will give us some breathing room. During that time, Dr. Morris will have his team working on the partial antibody, not just for you, but for any other cases that occur. Dr. Morris informs me there is a possible cluster. If I have your agreement, we'll schedule the transfusion as soon as possible. Kate will be spending a day in the hospital, and since there is a risk of bleeding and infection for both Kate and the baby, she'll have to continue bed rest while we monitor the outcome."

Castle leaned forward in his chair, his hands tightly clasped in his lap. "Are there other risks?"

Gale nodded. "Excessive amniotic leakage, although not generally with the umbilical procedure I'd be using, pre-term labor, and fetal death."

"So you're talking about the baby being premature or dying?" Castle pressed.

"Mr. Castle," Dr. Gale responded gently, "if we do nothing, the probability of one or the other of those things happening is even higher. The procedure is the baby's best chance for a healthy life."

Kate grabbed for Castle's hand, her face resolute. "I never knew I wanted this child as much as I do, but I want to give it the best chance possible." She turned to Dr. Gale. "Schedule the procedure."

* * *

As Castle delivered Kate back to their bed, the blast of a conch shell alerted him to a call from Tanu. He thumbed his phone's speaker icon. "Got some news, Rick. The managers of two of the businesses on your list were meeting with a political operative from D.C., guy by the name of Jason Marx. And guess who he works for."

"Bracken," Castle and Beckett responded in concert.

"Got it in one," Tanu confirmed. "This guy Marx makes regular trips to New York, seems to handle a lot of Bracken's dirty work. He's at a hotel in midtown and he uses a car service through the bellmen there. A couple of those bellmen are cousins of mine. They're keeping tabs on where he goes so we can pick up on any more relevant trips. If we catch him in the act of doing any kind of transaction with a drug dealer, we may be able to get him to flip on Bracken. Strength of character does not appear to be one of his attributes."

"Great work, man!" Castle exclaimed.

"It will be reflected in your billing statement," Tanu assured him. "But really man, I don't want some guy in Washington getting fat by shooting poison into kids. And I sure don't want a guy like that getting a chance at the presidency, so there will be a good works discount. My cousins are doing this for free and I'm working at just slightly above cost."

"A huge heart beats in that huge chest bro," Castle declared. "Thanks."

"You all take care." Tanu replied. "I'll be in touch."

* * *

Castle shifted restlessly in his seat in the waiting room. Martha tightly clasped one of his hands and Alexis leaned comfortingly against his shoulder. Jim Beckett sat stoically next to Martha. Castle was surprised to see Captain Montgomery approaching. The older cop pulled up a chair opposite Castle. "Just thought you could use some support, Castle. Evelyn had some serious problems when she was carrying Rebecca and I know how it feels to sit here. Evelyn is a strong woman and so is Kate. You're going to get through this."

Jim Beckett nodded in silent agreement at Montgomery's expression of his daughter's strength.

"I appreciate it Roy," Castle responded. "It's just that the hardest thing to do is nothing. If I could be in there, helping somehow, or even just holding Kate's hand, it would be easier, but I can't. Something about infection risk and maintaining a sterile field. They won't allow anyone in there that doesn't have to be."

"But there's an upside to that, right?" Roy suggested. "It means that they're taking every precaution to take good care of Kate and the baby."

"Captain Montgomery's right, Darling," Martha chimed in. "This is all about Kate and the baby. Much as I love you, your comfort is not the issue."

Castle rolled his eyes. His mother always knew just where to stick a pin in him to jolt him out of a self-pity parade. "Of course you're right, Mother."

"You want some coffee?" Montgomery offered. "I noticed they have a Java Hut cart in the lobby. Their lattes are almost as good as the ones you make on your fancy machine."

Castle shook his head. "If I have any more coffee, I'll slosh, but thanks." Martha, Alexis, and Jim Beckett shook their heads as well. "How is life at the Twelfth?" Castle inquired, desperately seeking some kind of distraction.

"Intimidating," Montgomery admitted. "Donovan's got his men coming through, randomly checking what people are doing. He's monitoring the computers and some of the detectives, including Ryan and Esposito, have bought burners in case he's monitoring their phones. It's like living in a movie of _1984_. Have your people made any progress?"

"What are you talking about?" Castle asked.

"Oh c'mon Castle, I know you and I know Kate. Neither one of you could let a case go. And I know that Ryan has been talking to some of his old contacts, so how's it going?"

"Roy, it's better if you can honestly claim ignorance, but hypothetically, if an investigation was going on, it might be the one thing going well in our lives right now."

Montgomery's lips quirked. "Then hypothetically, Castle, I'm glad you're on it."

All heads turned as Dr. Gale came down the hall. She'd removed her surgical mask but her brightly colored cap was still in place. Castle and Jim Beckett jumped to their feet to receive her report.


	53. Chapter 53

A Different Shade Of Pale

Chapter 53

"Everything went well. Both Kate and the baby are doing fine," Dr. Gale reported. "It's going to be a couple of hours yet before the sedative we gave her wears off completely, so she's a little out of it, but once we get her settled in a room, someone will take you in to sit with her. Just Mr. Castle and Mr. Beckett for now and then she can have other visitors later."

"Thank you Doctor!" Castle exclaimed, teetering as Alexis threw herself at him in a monster hug.

Jim Beckett extended a hand to Gale. "Add my thanks to Rick's."

"Suddenly I'm starved," Martha announced. "Alexis and I will go down to that outrageously expensive shop downstairs and see what we can find." She inclined her head toward Castle and Jim Beckett. "We can bring you two something while you wait to be taken to Katherine."

Castle and Jim Beckett both demurred. "I'll walk down with you," Roy Montgomery said. "I need to get back to the precinct - what's left of it."

Castle and Jim Beckett sank back down into chairs. "You know," Jim Beckett began hesitantly, "I wasn't really sure about you marrying Katie. I could see you two love each other. That would be evident from the highest seat in the bleachers. But you are a two time loser and I wasn't sure I could depend on you to stick around if the going got tough. Now it's pretty clear that you're here for her and I suspect you always will be. I'm very pleased to have you as a future son-in-law."

"That's nice to know, Jim, but the truth is that I'm going to marry Kate whether you approve or not. I love her more than I've ever loved any woman in my life. So nothing and no one is going to keep me away from her, whatever happens."

"Well that's just fine, Rick. That's how I felt about Johanna."

"How's your class action going?" Castle asked, searching for some entré into less loaded conversation.

"Well Martha's former beau is not making things easy, but the facts are on our side," Jim replied. "I have a number of experts ready to testify to the gluten contamination in the Palco products and doctors to confirm the damage done to their patients with celiac disease, so I'm sure we'll win in the end. Paliburn's lawyers just keep filing motions to slow everything down and force a low settlement. So far, all my people are holding strong."

"Well let me know if there's anything I can do to help," Castle offered. "I have half a million followers on Twitter and they know how to make a lot of noise for the right cause. I know a lot of bloggers with very high readership too, probably more than the papers these days."

"Thanks Rick, I think we're okay, but I'll keep that in mind."

Despite Castle's efforts, they fell into silence again until a cheery volunteer made her way to where they waited. "Mr. Castle? Mr. Beckett?" The men nodded their acknowledgment."I can take you upstairs to Ms. Beckett now."

Kate lay drowsily against the pillow. Her lids lifted slowly as the men entered the room and her voice was deep and breathy. "Hey Dad, Babe."

Castle brushed his index finder against her cheekbone. "Hey yourself. Planning on lazing around all day?"

"I thought I would, Castle. Your habits must be catching. Maybe I'll even get into _Terra Quest_."

"Yeah I can see you kicking the East Mountain Goblin King's ass. But if you beat me and get a Falchining sword, I am going to be pissed."

"Come to think of it, Castle, you've always been the artist with a sword. Maybe I should get into _Halo_ , use a different weapon. There's a character in there that sounds a little like you."

Jim Beckett coughed. "Katie, I'm only a phone call away if you need anything, but I think I'll just leave you and Castle to it."

Kate lifted a hand to her father. "Dad, thanks for being here. I'll call you whether I need anything or not."

Jim Beckett squeezed her hand and kissed her cheek before he left.

"Are Martha and Alexis around here somewhere too?" Kate asked.

"Your dad and I were allowed in first, so they went in search of sustenance, but they'll be in later. Listen, I heard from Tanu again. Jason Marx has been busy. He's called on every business on Ryan's list. Tanu is setting up a system to intercept calls and anything that goes out on wi fi from those places and from Marx. They'll probably be wise enough to encrypt, but you never know. All we need is one drug transaction we can trace through Marx to Bracken and we're on our way. Drug dealers don't usually employ brainiacs. Someone is going to slip."

"Castle if the police bugged someone like that without a warrant, anything they got would be thrown out in court."

"I know," Castle agreed. "And Marx or any any of the drug dealers or even Bracken could sue Tanu for invasion of privacy, or sue me for hiring him; but of course they won't. The minute they did, anything we found would become public. But Kate, Tanu and I aren't police so any evidence we get will still be admissible. We have nothing to lose here. Imagine the bonus if we get something on Donovan. Montgomery and all our friends at the Twelfth would be dancing in the streets. We just have to wait for something to pop - as long as it's not the baby. You need to keep that inside for quite a while yet."

"Castle, about the baby..."

"What?" Castle asked, his smile fading into his suddenly whitened face.

"Whoa, it's okay Babe, but a technician was doing an ultrasound to help set up for the procedure. I guess she didn't get the message that we didn't want to know the sex of the child yet. They'd already given me the happy juice, so I was pretty woozy, but she was definitely referring to the baby as a 'him'."

"Kate, 'him' is a pretty generic pronoun. A lot of people use it to mean either sex."

"Yeah Castle, I know. But when Dr. Gale came in, I asked. As whacked out as I was, she might have thought I wouldn't even remember, but she confirmed it, Castle. It's a boy."

"Well what do you know? Cosmo. If Alexis had been a boy I was going to name him Cosmo. It means order and beauty."

"Castle, I don't care what it means," Beckett insisted. "It sounds like a crazy character on _Seinfeld_. You would be dooming our son to a beat down on any playground in the country. When the time comes, we'll pick something else, something that won't leave him traumatized."

"When the time comes?" Castle repeated. "Kate are you afraid to name him now because you're afraid he won't make it?"

"Castle, no matter how good Dr. Gale is and no matter how hard Dr. Morris works with his team, it is still a real possibility. The thought of it tears me up but you know it's true. Choosing a name now could just make everything that much worse if we lose him."

"Or, Castle offered, "it could be a statement of faith that we won't. How about Morris? And then Gale as a middle name, like Gale Gordon, the guy who was on the Lucy show, or Gale Sayers, the football player. We name him after the people who save him."

"Castle, the name is fine, but are you really sure this is the time to settle it?"

"Kate, I'm sure. But tell you what," Castle proposed, "right now we can just call him M.G., pretend you have a tiny little sports car revving up in there."

Kate show her head in bemusement and gingerly laid a hand on on her rounded belly. "Alright, he's M.G., the little car that could."


	54. Chapter 54

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 54

Castle couldn't help grinning as he gazed at the joy on Kate's face while he drove back to the loft from Dr. Gale's office. "This has got to be the happiest I've seen you in months."

"Well of course Castle. M.G.'s okay, at least for now, I'm okay and I can go back to the precinct tomorrow."

"You do remember you're still behind a desk, right? And that Donovan's storm troopers are still making periodic rounds?"

Kate's smile continued at full wattage. "I do, Castle, but with the phone and computer chatter Tanu is picking up, I know we're going to have our breakthrough any day. And I just can't wait to throw it in Donovan's face."

"Definitely something to look forward to," Castle agreed, "and here's something else. Maddie called while Dr. Gale was checking your lady parts. She has some cake samples she wants us to taste. She thought we could do that late this afternoon and then have an early dinner at Q3."

"Sounds great!"

* * *

Kate closed her eyes, savoring the exquisite tang on her tongue. "Oh Maddie, these are incredible. I don't think I've ever tasted strawberries this intense before. And they're so tiny, like juicy jewels. Where did they come from?"

"They're wild. There's a strawberry farm in California that grows the ones like they have in the supermarket, big and red and bland. But there are fields around it where the birds just drop the seeds and the plants grow however. These are from there. It's a long season. With any luck we'll still be able to get them in May for your cake. But hey, I have other things for you to taste." Maddie handed Kate a small plate with a square of cake streaked in brown and white. This is vanilla latte, vanilla and coffee."

"How did you...? Of course, Castle."

"I know what pleasures my lady," Castle offered, flicking an eyebrow suggestively.

Kate sampled the tender confection approvingly before Maddie handed her another plate with cake so dark brown it was almost black. Kate nibbled from the tip of her fork before extending it to Castle. "This is so you, Babe."

Castle tasted, giving a Snuffles sigh of ecstasy. "Oh yes!"

Maddie cleared her throat. She could almost smell the pheromones drifting between the couple. "I was thinking, if the strawberry supply holds up, we could do a riff on cosmopolitan ice cream. We'd do a layer of vanilla latte, one of strawberry and one of midnight chocolate. We'd have three different icings too, a coffee, a strawberry, and an extreme blackout."

Castle unconsciously licked his lips. "Maddie you are a true genius."

"Wait 'til you taste your dinner," Maddie responded. "Jennifer has a whole new chef's choice offering. Her favorite appetizer, salad, entrée, and dessert. Pure heaven."

Kate leaned contentedly against Castle's shoulder as they walked to the car. "Maddie was right. That may be the best dinner I ever ate, or maybe it just matches my mood."

"Maybe we can see what else we can do to keep you happy," Castle suggested. "Unless I'm mistaken, and I rarely am, Dr. Gale said it would be all right."

"You are definitely not mistaken, Castle, at least not this time. And as nerve-wracking as things have been lately, I didn't realize just how much I missed... well, you know."

"Oh, I know. I really, really, know. Right now I wish you had a gumball to put on the car."

Kate held out her hand for the keys. "I'll drive, Castle. If we get stopped, I'll flash my badge."

Castle pressed the keys into her palm. "Good abuse of power."

Kate wove expertly in and out of traffic, reaching the loft in less than ten minutes. Castle kicked the door of the loft shut. "You think Alexis and Martha are here?" Kate asked.

"I know they're not. Alexis and some of her friends are preparing a skit for the charity talent show at school and Mother insisted on supervising. But just in case they get back early, I'm locking both the office and bedroom doors."

* * *

Kate groaned. With eyes struggling to open, she pulled free of Castle's arms and grabbed her rudely insistent phone. "Espo, this better be important."

"It is, Beckett. I know you're not due back for - uh, five hours, but I was pretty sure you'd want to know. We had a body drop. It's Donovan."

Kate was immediately wide awake. "I'll be right in."

Beckett perched on the desk in front of the murder board. Castle returned from the break room with three cups of coffee and an orange juice. He handed the juice to Kate, and Ryan and Esposito each got a coffee. Ryan inhaled appreciatively. "Castle it is good to have you back here."

"So what have we got?" Kate demanded.

"Donovan was shot, but not where he was found," Esposito reported. "He was shoved in a dumpster in an alley. We probably wouldn't have known about it, but there were some homeless guys dumpster diving and one of them got really spooked and started to scream. Somebody heard him and called the cops to complain about the noise. We have unis canvassing, but so far no one saw anyone near the dumpster around the time Lanie puts the murder."

"The traffic footage should be here soon," Ryan added. "I'll scrub it, but there weren't any cameras in the alley. I'll be looking at a three block radius."

Castle stared at the photos of the crime scene. "I know this area. It's a few blocks from Car Stars. That would be a heck of a coincidence. Ryan can you go for a five block radius instead of three?"

Ryan looked questioningly at Beckett. "Do it Ryan."

Beckett continued looking at Castle as Ryan and Esposito retreated to their desks, sipping at their coffee as they went. "Kate, what?" Castle asked.

"Tanu and his people have been monitoring Car Stars along with all the other Bracken drug businesses, right?"

"Yeah, Tanu's also been keeping me updated on the progress of my Knight Rider 2015. The guys at Car Stars haven't been working very hard on it. Seems they have other things on their agenda."

"Things like killing Donovan?"

Castle nodded. "That's what I'm thinking."

"So maybe Tanu has some evidence in Donovan's murder?" Kate wondered. "He might not even know it if he hasn't checked the transmissions he's been monitoring yet."

"Considering that the sun isn't even up, that's quite possible," Castle conceded. "You know there's a surcharge for waking him up, right? Still it's probably only another Strawberry Shortcake figure. Ooh! Maybe we could get Maddie to give him the real thing with those little miracles that she showed us for our wedding cake."

Kate pressed her lips together to avoid the guffaw threatening to burst from her lungs. "Whatever it takes, Castle. I think we better call him, but not in the middle of the bullpen."

"Break room?" Castle asked. "You've still got most of your juice and I've still got most of my coffee."

"I think I know a more private place." Beckett led the way to a small room near the back stairs. "Opening the door, she re-propped a mop that had fallen forward at her entrance. She closed the door and locked it. "Our own private phone booth."

Castle pulled out his cell. "Except for Grand Central Station, probably the only one left in the city."

Tanu answered answered on the first ring. "I was going to call you, Rick. There was a murder you'll be interested in last night."

Castle smiled at Kate over his phone. "Tell me all about it."

A/N I don't live in California, although I did for 25 years. Wild strawberries grow in my present yard, descendants of less interesting strawberry plants I bought. They are very tiny, slightly tart, super intense, and like nothing in a store. For those unfamiliar with American cartoons, Snuffles is a dog in Quick Draw McGraw who has close to an orgasmic response when given a treat, hugging himself and floating down on air. He's on YouTube.


	55. Chapter 55

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 55

Castle and Beckett looked at the footage Ryan threw up on the big screen in Tech. The camera had caught an image through the front windshield of a large black sedan. A very dead Donovan was slumped in the passenger seat. At the wheel was a blurry Vulcan Simmons. Ryan brought up another angle. "This is the license plate. It's a Lincoln. The car isn't registered to Simmons. It belongs to a Carl Worthmore who had it at Car Stars to be pimped out. He had no idea it was on the road last night. The problem is Simmons' lawyers are claiming that's not him and the image isn't good enough for a high confidence level on facial recognition."

Castle rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet, his face creasing in a smug smile. "I think we can do better. My people monitored a call into Car Stars last night. The voice receiving the call was definitely Vulcan Simmons. The message was an instruction to put an end to a problem cop who wanted a bigger piece. We also have surveillance video hacked from Car Stars security system showing two guys loading Donovan into the passenger seat of the Lincoln and Simmons sticking a gun back in a holster before getting behind the wheel. It's all on its way now."

* * *

Simmons smiled confidently at Beckett across the table in interrogation. "Didn't you take a lesson the last time, Detective? My lawyers already saw the evidence against me. You'll never make it past arraignment."

Castle took the narrative while Beckett gazed unflinchingly at Simmons. "While it is true that your lawyers have seen the evidence gathered by the stalwart efforts of the N.Y.P.D., new evidence has come to light at the hands of civic minded private citizens." Castle pushed stills of Simmons getting into the Lincoln in front of the defiant dealer.

"We have more, more than enough to get a warrant to look for blood, gunshot residue, anything we need to put you away forever." Beckett declared triumphantly. "You have one chance. Give us the man who gave the order."

Simmons stared back defiantly. "I am giving you nothing, Detective."

"Have it your way," Beckett returned. "You may be reconsidering very soon." Beckett nodded at the one way mirror and two uniformed officers came into interrogation to take Simmons to holding.

"He still had his bluster, but did you see his fingers were twitching and he was starting to sweat," Castle noted when Simmons had been led away.

"I saw, Babe. Tanu gave us enough so that CSU will be going over Car Stars, Simmons' apartment, everywhere we know Simmons has been. We may already have enough to make Simmons flip, but anything they find should seal the deal. In the meantime, sitting in holding won't make him any less nervous, especially if we stick Leo in with him."

Gleeful crinkles formed at the corners of Castle's eyes. "The six foot six white supremacist with the tattoos on his face?"

Beckett nodded, the rattle of a giggle in her throat. "That's him. I heard he just got picked up again on a stop and frisk. He had four guns on him and no permits for any of them. He's also wearing a 'White Makes Right' t-shirt. He and Simmons should just love each other. We could just leave them together overnight while the lab processes whatever CSU brings in."

"Why Detective Beckett, your underhandedness is impressive. Just one thing, let's get the surveillance video from holding to watch later. I'll make the popcorn."

Kate toyed with the buttons on his shirt. "Castle, I think that might be arranged."

* * *

A cowed Vulcan Simmons sat quietly next to his attorney, Bill Moss. "Here's the situation," Beckett explained. "CSU found blood matching Marcus Donovan in a Lincoln containing your client's fingerprints. Your client was on video getting into that Lincoln with a gun. The clothes he wore in that video were positive for gunshot residue. A gun was found at his apartment and ballistics matched it to the bullet that killed Donovan. The case is open and shut. Your client murdered a police officer. He will go to prison for life. The question is, how long that life will be."

"New York has no death penalty," Moss interrupted. "It was abolished in 2007."

"New York doesn't, but the man your client works for does. He makes a habit of cleaning up loose ends. Marcus Donovan was a loose end, a cop on the take who got too greedy. Now your client is the loose end, counselor. His boss has no difficulty having people killed in prison. He's already done it with another cop killer. As things stand now, your client's a dead man, it's just a matter of whose shiv is going to find his gut at Rikers. But if he gives us his contacts, his boss, then he goes into the segregated population. He'll be protected. If the D.A. is feeling really generous, he might even get a few comforts." Beckett turned to Simmons. "Right now, whatever future you have is in your hands. It's a better deal than my mother got."

Moss rose from the table. "I'm afraid that from this moment, I'm resigning as Mr. Simmons' attorney." Moss walked out of the room and kept going to the elevator.

Castle raised an eyebrow at an increasingly agitated Simmons. "Looks like your lawyer didn't want to become another of your bosses loose ends."

"Alright!" Simmons blurted out, an octave above his usual rumbling tones. "The man behind all this is William Bracken, senator William Bracken. My guess is that Mama's girl already knows that. But I haven't seen Bracken face to face or heard from him directly since his old D.A. days. He works hard to keep those lily white hands clean. I deal through his associate, a slick pol like his boss, name of Jason Marx."

"Did Jason Marx order the hit on Donovan?" Beckett asked.

"He did," Simmons confirmed, "but I can't testify that it was on Bracken's orders. The man just said those were his instructions. He didn't say from whom."

Beckett pushed a legal pad and a pen under Simmons' hands. "You give us everything you have and I mean everything. Then we'll see what we can do to help you see another day."

* * *

Beckett put down her phone and palmed her forehead at her desk. Castle returned from preparing drinks in the break room and took his accustomed chair next to her. "We still don't have Bracken, Castle. The phone calls, emails, everything we got from Tanu, they lead to Marx. We know Marx works for Bracken but we can't prove the connection. Bracken's been too careful. He name isn't actually on anything Marx has done. Marx is an independent contractor."

"So you bring Marx in and sweat him, Beckett. You have Simmons' statement and everything from Tanu. You'll find a way to get a connection to Bracken out of him. He's in as much danger as Simmons now. With Simmons caught, he's the next loose end. Unless the man is totally clueless he knows that. He's got to be running scared."

"That's just it, Castle. He is running. He checked out of his hotel. He didn't even take a cab, so we can't trace him that way. One of Tanu's cousins saw him heading for the subway. He could have been going anywhere. We ordered the transit video, but even if he's on it, there's no way to know where he is now. I have a watch on the airports and on the trains, but he could have picked up a car somewhere. We tagged his cards, but nothing's shown up yet. If he has drug money, he could be doing everything in cash."

"So we look for cash," Castle suggested. "Almost no one does transactions that way anymore. You can't rent a car without a card or a huge deposit. Renting rooms with cash is suspicious. And don't the drug guys like to use big bills? He could be using hundreds. Those are memorable. A lot of places won't even take them. You put a call out on the web, the social media, even the regular media. Even if he's disguised and using a phony name, someone may remember the money."

"Castle, sometimes I forget what a genius you are."

"Yeah," Castle smiled, "I know."


	56. Chapter 56

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 56

"Have you got anything?" Beckett asked as Castle scrolled through his Twitter time line.

"This might be promising," Castle replied. "CastleCrazed47 works at a car rental in Hoboken. She said a guy came in who rented a car and put his deposit down in hundred dollar bills. She couldn't tell if he looked like the picture I posted of Marx because he was wearing a Panama hat and sunglasses. He had a D.C. drivers license in the name of Jeremy Markson but the picture on that wasn't great either. She was mostly looking at the hat because no one wears one of those in February in New Jersey."

"That's probably why he wore it," Kate commented. "The man is smart. He provided a distraction. Did she give you a plate number?"

"She did. She had to go to Twitlonger. She said it was a silver Taurus with a sticker for Speedy Rentals on it. She sent a picture of the logo." Castle held up his phone. "Look, Speedy Gonzales!"

"Yeah, I'm sure Marx was intent on speeding his way away from here. He may have made it pretty far by now, but I'll put out a BOLO between New Jersey and D.C. in case he's heading home. Maybe we'll get lucky. If he's using the name Jeremy Markson, I'll put out alerts on that too. Good work Castle, you and your fan."

"I'm going to DM CastleCrazed47 so I can send her an autographed picture. Least I can do."

"Mm," Kate agreed. "She's a better witness than we usually get. Send her my thanks too."

Castle looked at Kate in surprise. He had been expecting an eye roll and at least a touch of sarcasm, but Kate seemed sincere. He punched the message into his phone before she could change her mind.

The afternoon dragged as Castle and Beckett slogged through a cascade of false tips, but found no more credible sightings. Castle was about to get a pizza when an alert came in from TSA that Marx, as Jeremy Markson, had attempted to get a flight from Dulles Airport to the U.S. Virgin Islands. Beckett chaffed under the restrictions from Dr. Gale that prevented her from traveling to D.C. to pick up Marx herself, but despite an incoming storm, Ryan and Esposito were willing to make the trip. Castle suggested a return to the loft until the boys could bring Marx back the following day.

* * *

Beckett paced the floor. "Kate," Castle counseled, "it's at least a four hour drive, more if they hit bad road conditions. Then they'll just be checking into a hotel anyway. Marx is going to be held until they take custody of him in the morning. Nothing is happening tonight except for you making money for the guys who will refinish the track you're wearing in the hardwood."

"Kate stopped walking, shifting her weight from one foot to another. "I know Castle, but we're so close. I just want to finish this."

Castle pulled her into his arms nestling her head under his chin. "I know. You need a distraction."

"Castle, right now I really don't feel like..."

"Yeah I get it, although it can do wonders for relieving tension, but I was thinking of something else."

"What?" Beckett asked.

"The episodes of your favorite guilty pleasure have been piling up on the DVR since we went back to the precinct. How about a Temptation Lane marathon, accompanied by hot cocoa with extra marshmallows and fresh brownies?"

"Castle, we don't have any brownies, fresh or otherwise and even if we started to bake now, we couldn't cut them until they cooled, which takes forever."

Castle curled his lip in distaste. "Have I taught you nothing? You only have to wait to cut them if they're mix brownies. If you make them from scratch, you can cut them warm. Then when you put the ice cream on top it melts and runs over the edges."

The tip of Kate's tongue rounded her lips."Alright, Master Rick, teach me your chocolate ways. Where's the bowl?"

"Oh Grasshopper, you have much to learn. We must melt the sacred chocolate. No bowl." Castle dropped four squares of baking chocolate into a heavy saucepan, added shortening and put it over low heat. Stir, Grasshopper," he instructed, putting a heat resistant pad down on the counter. As soon as the chocolate was smooth and liquid, Castle moved the pan from the stove to the pad and mixed in four outrageously expensive pasteurized eggs, two cups of sugar and a teaspoon of double strength vanilla.

"Castle, those are pure evil!" Kate protested.

Castle grinned at her. "That's the fun isn't it?" He continued with flour, baking powder, and salt. "No nuts to spoil the supreme fudginess, and now I'm trusting you with one of my most precious secrets."

Kate stared at the brightly colored package Castle opened. "Malted milk powder?"

"Nirvana, I assure you," Castle proclaimed. Castle used a spatula to spread the thick batter in a baking pan, popped it in the oven and held out the remnants of batter in the saucepan to Kate. "Lick?"

Kate waved her tongue at him. "Is that a request or an invitation?"

Castle sputtered and silently blessed their most important permission from Dr. Gale. "You can have the pan now and we'll see about the rest later."

As Kate enjoyed sweet dark streaks on the pan, Castle made cocoa and queued up the DVR. Kate came to join him, with tempting dots of dark brown on her bottom lip. Sighing, Castle couldn't resist kissing it clean. "Incredible!"

Kate pressed next to him on the couch. "My lips or the brownie batter?"

"Yes," Castle whispered huskily. "Something else we can see about later."

The actors soaped their way across the screen while Kate and Castle immersed themselves in confectionery ecstasy. Castle pointed to an onscreen love scene. "We do it so much better than that."

"It's network TV. They have standards and practices," Kate explained.

Castle ran his hands down the length of her long legs. "We have standards and practices too. They're just more fun."

Castle squirmed uncomfortably as the last episode played. Finally the theme music rolled over the final credits. Castle thumbed the remote control to blacken the screen. He scooped Kate off her place against the cushions and carried her to the bedroom. "Time to play our own scenes." Their lips came together with sticky heat. Needs that had been delayed could no longer be denied. They were oblivious as brownie crumbs flew when clothes scattered. Their demanding bodies came together with an urgency that eclipsed the poor imitation the soap stars had played out for the camera. Blown apart by the final explosion, they lay side by side, locks of Kate's hair falling across Castle's face."

Castle sniffed at a strand that lay just above his upper lip. "Mmm, cherry and chocolate. This may be a record for me, three desserts."

Kate's eyebrows rose. "Three, Castle?"

Castle drew her against his side. "Brownies, cherry brownie crumb surprise, and the most intoxicating feast in the universe - you."

A/N For the most part, chickens, especially those raised by large agribusiness aren't vaccinated against salmonella in the U.S.. The salmonella gets in the eggs. To make a batter safe for licking, especially for a pregnant lady, eggs here have to be pasteurized. That makes them about twice the price, a freight Castle would, of course, gladly pay. This story takes place years ago, but the situation now is even worse because of an outbreak of avian flu in the Midwest, greatly exacerbated by chicken factory conditions. Now pasteurized eggs, at least around here, are $5.79 a dozen. Cock-a -doodle-whew!


	57. Chapter 57

A/N To Guest: Yes, the recipe is legit, Hershey's are not the only ones who use a sauce pan, so does Betty Crocker, but as far as I know neither of them puts malted milk powder in their brownies. I think that's unique to me, (or Castle if you prefer.) If you want something really fudgy, forget the baking powder. Flat, but incredible!

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 57

The storm hit the interstate without mercy. Ryan inched along, his hands glued to the wheel. Even with his wipers moaning at the glass, blowing snow reduced visibility to a few feet. "Javi, we need to get off the road, man, before we slide or spin off, or worse, someone hits us in this whiteout."

Esposito indicated their prisoner. "What are we going to do with him?'

"Get a room, take turns watching him. The way we're going we're not going to make it back with him anyway. Next sign for a hotel, motel, anything, I'm taking it."

It was clear that many of the other drivers had the same idea, as a slow moving white worm of cars inched its way down the next exit ramp. The motel wasn't great. The rooms were small and despite declaring themselves smoke-free, still stank of its remnants. Ryan and Esposito managed to get adjoining rooms with an extra bed to accommodate Jason Marx, but there was nothing handy for attachment of cuffs. The motel had no sources of food except for vending machines with soft drinks, stale candy bars, and staler chips. Leaving Ryan to watch Marx, Esposito made the trek through the drifts of snow in the parking lot to an adjacent McDonalds®. He returned loudly disgruntled. "Can you believe they ran out of freakin' burgers? A McDonalds® that runs out of burgers! We've got nuggets. At least they still had fries, but they're probably cold. I hate cold fries."

"Javi, are you going to be complaining all night?" Ryan asked, "'cause I just got an earful of disappointment from Beckett when I told her we weren't going to make it back today. This mess missed New York entirely and she was waiting at the precinct. I don't envy Castle waiting through another day with her, but she's pregnant. What's your excuse?"

"Sorry bro, it's just - I had plans," Esposito explained sheepishly. "Very hot plans."

"Sorry," Ryan apologized, wrinkling his nose at a soggy rod of tepid potato. "Look, I'll take the first watch, okay?"

* * *

Beckett slammed down the receiver of the land line on her desk. "I don't believe this! Ryan and Espo are waiting out the storm in a motel. It's going to be another day before I get to question Marx!"

Castle put a hand on her shoulder. "We have something else to mull over. I just got more information from Tanu. I thought it was interesting that Simmons' lawyer Bill Moss quit the case so abruptly, so I had Tanu look into his background. Turns out he's the nephew of Ben Moss."

"The Kingmaker in Washington?" Beckett asked.

Castle touched the tip of his finger to his nose and pointed at Kate, making dinging noises. "It appears that Uncle Ben is behind the push to make Bracken president. I don't know what Bracken promised him, but if Bracken's connection to murder and drug trafficking is exposed, it will all come crashing down. Bill Moss' resignation as Simmons' lawyer makes it look like the Moss family is leaving a sinking ship. Bracken may have bigger problems than us. Moss may want him taken out of the picture entirely. Rumor has it that it wouldn't be the first time he's removed an annoyance."

"Castle, I can't imagine anyone wanting Bracken's head more than I do, and I'd probably dance on his grave, but I want to nail him for my mother's death and the rest of what he's done, not just see him disappear. I need closure and I'm sure the families of his other victims do as well. There's nothing I can do if he's in D.C., but if he's in New York, I'm going to put a protective unit on him. Can you have Tanu find out? I don't want to tip anyone with inquiries from the N.Y.P.D.."

Castle looked at her in wonder before palming his phone. "If that's what you want, Kate."

* * *

Scraping noises echoed through the early morning as plows attacked both the highway and the motel parking lot. Jarred awake after a few hours of sleep, Ryan went to the next room, where Esposito had taken over the watch on Marx. "Sounds like we'll be hitting the road soon."

Esposito walked across the room to pull back the drapes from a window overlooking the road. "Yeah, looks like the plow jockeys are getting it done." Esposito regarded a drowsily nervous Marx. "Beckett will be happy to see this asshole."

"Yeah," Ryan grinned, "but I bet he won't be happy to see her."

* * *

Jason Marks wasn't happy about anything. Ryan had grudgingly bought him a toothbrush from a vending machine at the hotel, but he'd had no change of clothes since he'd been picked up at the airport and his last food had been Esposito's choice of pizza with double jalapenos. Jason hated jalapenos. Now, with his cuffs secured with chains, he faced a hard-eyed female detective and her writer sidekick, across a table. Knowing that his own contacts were useless, he'd asked for a lawyer, who sat beside him. Jason took stock of the young and sweaty figure. If he'd passed the bar, it had probably been within the last month. Jason was screwed.

Beckett thrust a number of stills at Marx. She pointed at one. "This is you with Vulcan Simmons at a known drug money laundering front where Simmons killed a cop. Vulcan Simmons says the order came from you and I'm inclined to believe him. He could have gotten a whole lot more points by claiming it came from your boss, but he didn't." She pointed to the rest of the stack. "These are you visiting other fronts around the city. We also have recordings of your cell phone communications with them. There are enough separate conspiracy charges here to put you away for life, even without the murder, but here's the thing, Jason. We don't care s**t about you. We know you're just a conduit to Bracken. And you know that he knows we know. You were running for your life and you were doing it with some of his drug money. You're in the same boat as Simmons. Without our protection, you're a dead man. By telling us the truth you have nothing to lose, but you might gain your life. Who knows? With a good enough deal, you might even make parole some day."

Jason gazed over at his lawyer who wiped his palms on his pants and nodded ineffectually. "Alright, but I want a D. A. in here. I can't afford to take the word of a cop."

"Fine," Beckett agreed and walked out of the room, followed by Castle. leaving Jason chained next to his counsel.

Castle's cell dinged, alerting him to a text. "Tanu says Bracken is at the Westchester in midtown. You still planning to put a team on him?"

"Oh yeah! It won't be long now. Restricted duty or not, they can keep him safe until I snap the cuffs on him myself."

A/N 2: Some of you may remember that Jared's lawyer in _Dial M for Mayor_ was named Bill Moss. The man who hired Bracken's driver to kill him in _Recoil_ was Ben Moss, the kingmaker.


	58. Chapter 58

A Different Shade of Of Pale

Chapter 58

A.D.A. Toni Gonzalez strode off the elevator at the Twelfth and approached observation on her way to interrogation. Esposito started to smile at her approach only to be met by a dismissive glare. "Come on Chica, you know I couldn't help it, I was stuck in a motel with Ryan and the dirt bag you're gonna be dealing with. Last thing I wanted was to miss our date."

Toni's shoulders stiffened. "You knew you were going out of town. You could have left the tickets. I could have taken my sister. Instead, Pearl Jam was singing to two empty seats. All this macho in charge crap, it's stupid Javi. Worse, it's insulting!"

"I said I was sorry," Esposito pleaded. "Look, I'll get something better."

Toni drew her mouth in to a tight line. "I don't have time for this. I'm here to work, not to have you make puppy eyes at me."

"Talk later?" Esposito asked hopefully.

"We'll see," Toni told him, reaching for the door of interrogation.

Toni slid into a chair between Beckett and Castle opposite Jason Marx and his fledgling attorney. "Mr. Marx I understand you want to play _Let's Make a Deal_. What are you offering?"

"Senator William H. Bracken and the largest drug ring in the city." Marx answered.

Toni remained impassive. "From what Detective Beckett has already given me, we already have more than enough evidence against the drug ring and that evidence implicates you. Why would I want Senator Bracken?"

"He gave the order for the murder of Marcus Donovan, Johanna Beckett, and numerous other killings the N.Y.P.D. buried as random killings or gang violence."

Toni raised a skeptical eyebrow. "And you can prove all this?"

"I can. I have a USB drive hidden, with audio recordings, copies of documents, bank records."

"I'd have to see it," Toni insisted.

The young attorney jumped in. "My client can't just hand it over. We need assurances."

"And what exactly do you need assurances of?" Toni inquired.

"We need a written deal," the attorney continued, trying not to wilt under Toni's stare. "Full protection in prison and eligibility for parole after ten years."

Toni smirked. "Ten years? That doesn't even cover the money laundering charges let alone murder and conspiracy. On confirmation of the evidence you've promised I can offer eligibility for parole after thirty years in segregated population."

"Twenty-five," the young attorney countered.

"Care to try for thirty-five?" Toni returned. "Considering that your client should never see the sun again, it's a good deal."

The lawyer looked at Jason and shrugged his shoulders. Jason closed his eyes and curled his hands into tight fists. "Fine, show me a copy of the deal and I'll tell you where to find the drive."

* * *

Kate smoothed the lapel of Castle's coat as he prepared to accompany Ryan and Esposito to the plane he'd chartered for the short hop to D.C.. "Babe I wish I could go with you."

Castle stroked her cheek. "Hey, Ryan and Esposito have all the paperwork. There are no storms on the radar. We should be back in a few hours with the prize. No TSA, no lines. The pleasures of private planes - but you know that by now. Not that our trip to Romania was exactly a pleasure, but this one should be."

Kate stood on tiptoe to kiss him goodbye. "Castle!" Esposito called, "Today. Some of us are actually working here."

Castle pressed one last kiss to Kate's hair and turned to join the two cops. "You'd think you guys would appreciate how much longer this would take if I wasn't going with you, or maybe you really enjoyed your last road trip?"

"We appreciate it, Castle," Ryan responded. "Javi's just got other problems."

Castle nodded. "Oh, the steely-eyed A.D.A. Gonzalez?"

Esposito's eyebrows flew up. "How did you...? Ryan, have you been flapping your mouth?"

Castle clapped Esposito on the shoulder. "I didn't need Ryan to tell me. I'm a writer. I observe. You start dropping things when she's around and both of you looked upset when she came to the precinct. One and one make a warring couple. She should feel better when you deliver the goods on Bracken. A case like that can be a real career maker. I'm sure you can figure out some way she can show her thanks."

Esposito's face began to light as he nodded slowly. "Yeah, I can figure out a few ways. Let's get it done, Castle."

"You bet," Castle agreed. "Shotgun!"

Ryan shook his head. "Shoulda known you'd do that."

The bank manager carefully scrutinized the stack of paper Ryan handed him before leading the men to a safety deposit box. Ryan inserted a key Marx had provided while the manager turned his. The manager ushered them into a privacy room where Ryan opened the box which contained the drive as Marx had promised. Ryan connected it to a laptop Tech had provided for the purpose and brought up the files while Castle and Esposito looked over his shoulder. "Ooh, play that WAV file," Castle requested, towering over the other two men as he danced on his toes.

The sound that emanated from the speaker of the laptop was tinny, but recognizable. It was William Bracken ordering the death of Marcus Donovan and gloating that it would be easier and cheaper than when he had Johanna Beckett taken out. "Got you, you bastard!" Castle exclaimed, pulling out his cellphone to call Kate. "Play it again, Ryan, Beckett needs to hear this."

* * *

Senator William Bracken had his makeup applied and had settled himself knee to knee with political reporter Linda Carlisle in the WABC studio in New York when the vibration of approaching feet penetrated the soundproofing of the room. The door was pushed open by Kate Beckett, under special dispensation from Captain Montgomery. Ryan, Esposito, and Castle were directly behind her, followed by four uniformed officers and two FBI agents. Bracken sprang from his seat. "What the hell is this?"

Linda gave a signal to roll the camera as Beckett approached holding handcuffs. "Senator Bracken," she announced, you are under arrest for conspiracy, money laundering, drug dealing, violation of R.I.C.O. laws and the murders of John Raglan, Marcus Donovan, and my mother Johanna Beckett. Turn around," she ordered.

Face ashen and eyes wide with shock, Bracken turned and Kate applied the cuffs with a satisfying rasp. Ryan and Esposito grabbed his arms to lead him away as the camera continued to record his shame.

Bracketed from the front and behind by blue and white marked units, Ryan and Esposito drove Bracken to Central Booking. Beckett drove her unit, with Castle in the seat next to her, to watch Bracken remanded. Finally they returned the loft. They stopped just inside the front door as they shed their coats. "Your mother's proud of you," Castle told her. "Wherever she is, she's proud."

"Wrapping her arms around Castle's neck, Kate pressed her chin to his shoulder. "I couldn't have done it without you Babe. You're the best partner a cop could ever have. I can't wait to make you my partner in life."

Castle lowered his lips for a kiss. "I can't wait either."

A/N You might remember Toni Gonzalez as the A.D.A. in _Probable Cause_ who refused to delay sending Castle to Central Booking while Beckett and the boys struggled to uncover proof that 3XK was framing him. She's not much nicer here, but then Espo likes his ladies tough.


	59. Chapter 59

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 59

Kate and Castle sat in a doctorless office waiting for Dr. Gale. Kate's voice quavered. "You know Castle, when we were chasing Bracken, it was a lot easier not to worry about the baby. But now..."

Castle squeezed her hand. "I know, right now it's hard to think about anything else. I hope Dr. Gale gets here soon, but O.B.s - when a baby comes, it comes. It's a good sign she'll be just as attentive to M.G.."

Dr. Gale rushed through the door carrying Kate's chart. "I am so sorry I kept you waiting, but I didn't want to reschedule this discussion." Gale dropped into the chair behind her desk and took a breath before she began her explanation. "Normal red blood cells are good for about four months, but transfused cells only fifty to sixty days. We 're approaching the end of that window for the baby and we need to discuss some strategy. As you know, Dr. Morris and his team have been working on a partial antibody to bond with the foreign protein on the baby's cells and protect them from attack by Kate's immune system. He tells me that he believes he's accomplished that task and he's done some preliminary testing on the cells we obtained from the baby at the time we did the transfusion. We believe that right now the baby has a mixture of still healthy transfused cells and new ones. What we propose to do is draw a small amount of cord blood, and treat it with the antibody. Then we'd expose it to Kate's blood and look for signs of breakdown. If things look good, we give the baby the antibody. If not, we'd be talking about another transfusion."

"We already know the risks of another transfusion. What about the procedure you've described?" Castle asked.

"Let's take it one step at a time," Dr. Gale counseled. "The first step, taking the baby's blood, is just an outpatient procedure. Kate would be given a sedative to minimize her movement. I'd numb her up with a local anesthetic and then use ultrasound to guide a needle to the umbilical vein to draw a small amount of the baby's blood. There would be a slight risk of infection or bleeding but considerably less than with a transfusion. Kate, considering how well you and the baby did with the transfusion, I don't anticipate any problems. Once we see what happens with the tests Dr. Morris runs, we can go from there."

"When do we do it?" Kate queried, holding tightly to Castle.

"Soon," Gale advised. "It would be best to do it within the next couple of days."

Kate nodded, chewing her lip. "Alright, as soon as possible."

* * *

Once the sedative took effect and Castle had been shooed from the room in the outpatient clinic, Kate's procedure only took a few moments, but Castle could have sworn it was hours. Kate was smiling when he was called back in to sit with her until the sedative wore off and he could take her back to the loft. "What's the joke?" Castle asked.

"No joke," Kate replied, "it's just I feel a little like when I drink that red wine that makes me feel all... You know the one."

Castle's eyes crinkled as he grinned. "Know it? I have a case of it put away for after M.G. is born."

"Castle, if things go as we hope, that isn't going to be until about three months after our wedding. We haven't talked much about a honeymoon. I won't be able to travel very far until after M.G. comes and even then we'll be taking care of him and I won't be able to, you know, for a while anyway. Not exactly the recipe for a romantic getaway."

"That's true," Castle agreed, "but Kate, I've traveled to a lot of places, Barcelona, the Galapagos, the Alps, and I can tell you that as beautiful as those places can be, it's a lot more about being able to enjoy the company than scenery. The most important thing is if we can get some time just to enjoy being together, without my mother, without Alexis, and especially without Ryan and Esposito. If it's just you and me with no case hanging over our heads or chapters due, I don't care where we go. We can always plan a grand tour later. Although, when you think about it, a lot of people come to New York for their honeymoons. We could get a room at the Four Seasons or the Plaza and when we're not snuggling, we play tourist. We could catch plays on Broadway, do the harbor cruise, the Statue of Liberty, maybe even the make out spots at The Cloisters."

Kate giggled. "I haven't made out at the Cloisters since I was at Stuy."

"Yeah, I haven't since high school either. But it was cheapest date around, better even than the sunrise on the Staten Island Ferry. Ooh, we could do that too. And MOMA, And the Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum. They have all that stuff about Hubble. We'd have to do that. And The Museum of Natural History and the Planetarium. We could cuddle in the dark."

"Wow, you get so used to living here you forget how much stuff there is to do," Kate realized. "I've never even had one of those rides in the horse drawn wagons in Central Park."

"Let's add it in and if it's warm enough, we could rent a rowboat at the park too," Castle added. "Also an excellent make out spot if there aren't too many people on the lake."

"Castle, all that is really beginning to sound like fun."

Castle took her hand. "Kate, we're going to have a great honeymoon. Just like we're going to have a great wedding and a great life. That reminds me. Kurt, our new wedding planner wanted to come over tonight and talk about napkins, tablecloths, and place cards. I told him I'd let him know."

"What happened to the old wedding planner?" Kate asked.

"He decided to go to London. He said he needed to "drink in everything about William's marriage to Kate - the other Kate. I think we're better off without him. Besides, he had a real thing for puce. He would have had the guests sick even before the bar opened. If he hadn't left, I think we would have had to fire him."

"Mm," Kate agreed. "I never saw that color until one summer I - never mind. Anyway, I thought it should have been spelled with a 'k' instead of a 'c'."

"No no, back up," Castle urged. "Never mind what?"

Kate flushed. "The summer I was seventeen I - I was a model, so I learned about colors, even disgusting ones."

"Well I can't say I'm surprised. I do attract gorgeous women. Maybe you could be a model again. "Is there a magazine called Pregnant Bride?"

As Kate threw her pillow at Castle, Dr. Gale walked in and surveyed the tears of laughter moistening her cheeks. "Obviously the sedative has worn off. Kate, it's time for you and Dad here to go home."

"Home," Castle repeated. "I love the sound of that."


	60. Chapter 60

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 60

Dr. Gale was seated at her desk with Morris standing behind her chair, when she waved Kate and Castle into their now accustomed seats. "First of all, relax," Gale told them. "The testing of Kate's blood against the baby's treated cells looks excellent. Dr. Morris and I have just been going over the slides of the results. We can schedule another short procedure to introduce the antibody to the baby."

"I don't understand," Castle puzzled. "Morris, much as it's nice to see you, if it's all good news, why are you here?"

"Actually, Mr. Castle, I wanted to talk to you about other possible recipients for the antibody," Morris explained. "Since you put me in touch with the - unusual - community in Belleville after we returned from Romania, I've been working with the leadership there to coordinate research into the use of the plasmodium that brought about your cure. We've been looking into a number of avenues, i.e. transporting the mosquitoes to Belleville and setting up facilities for a treatment regimen there, or setting up a facility in Romania, or both. When this newest complication surfaced, I needed to discuss it with them - not by name of course. I wouldn't violate your confidentiality, but they had no difficulty figuring it out it was associated with you, since they were aware of your trip and your treatment. They don't know the pregnancy is Ms. Beckett's, but I suspect they figured that out as well since the two of you have been together during this entire unusual medical journey. I will, of course, be monitoring the effects of the antibody on the fetus and Ms. Beckett. If the treatment is as efficacious as we hope, the elders in Belleville - well probably much of the town - would like to discuss it with you. In the unfortunate event that it is not, they would still like an accounting of your experience."

"Are we talking about a trip up there?" Castle asked, looking at Dr. Gale. "Kate can't be in a car that long, can she?"

"No you're right, Mr. Castle," Dr. Gale confirmed. "You may go, of course and Kate could Skype. Or it might be best to wait until after the baby is born. You'd have a much more complete story to tell."

"I was actually considering both cases," Morris put in, "but I believe any decisions should be put off until we observe the results from the antibody. We are, of course, hoping for good news soon."

Castle regarded Gale and Morris with interest as they exchanged a look.

"Just think about it," Dr. Gale added. "What you've gone through, Mr. Castle, and what Kate is going through now, may be of help to a great number of people."

Castle looked at Kate with a raised eyebrow. She nodded. "I don't think there's much of anything to think about," he asserted, "and I think Kate agrees. We'll help in any way we can. I just hope we will be delivering encouraging news."

Gale exchanged a look with Morris again, before giving the couple an earnest smile. "That's what we all hope."

"Did you see the looks passing between those two?" Castle asked, as he and Kate returned to the car. "Am I imagining things or does it look like those two are getting it on?"

"If you're imagining things then so am I," Kate responded. "There was some definite heat between them."

"Kind of like us," Castle mused. "We bonded over solving mysteries and so did they. Except we do murder and they do medical."

Kate leaned her head against his shoulder. "Let's just hope their closure rate is as good as ours."

* * *

Castle greeted the staff members at the clinic by name. "This is getting to be the way it was when I was popping into the hospital for transfusions all the time," he noted wryly to Kate. "We're becoming regulars. I hope this is our last visit."

Kate snorted. " _You_ hope? I'm the one they keep sticking with needles."

"Point taken," Castle quipped. "I think while they exclude me from your presence I'm going to pop over to the gift shop at the hospital and pick up some keepsakes for these wonderful people."

"Whatever keeps you busy, Castle."

Castle wandered around the shop surveying the only slightly overpriced offerings. Books and magazines were out, especially since they didn't have any Nikki Heats or Derrick Storms that he could autograph. The stuffed animals were cute, but nothing called to him. In the end, he decided to go with always reliable flowers, thankful he didn't have to worry about any male nurses or aides. Returning to the clinic, he made the rounds presenting wrapped single flowers to everyone who'd been helpful to him and to Kate, saving a mixed bouquet for Dr. Gale, and deep red roses for Kate.

More awake than usual when Castle was allowed to join her, Kate cheerfully inhaled deeply of the roses' fragrance. "They hardly gave me anything this time, since once they had everything located it was just a quick shot. Dr. Gale said I should be ready to go in a few minutes."

"She told me that when I presented her with her flowers." Castle acknowledged. "I have to figure out what to do for Morris, especially if all this works."

"Besides naming our kid after him? That's sweet, but it is sort of putting the cart before the horse isn't it, Castle?"

"Just staying positive," Castle insisted.

"Castle, speaking of staying positive, I want to go to the precinct when we get out of here. Until we find out whether this worked or not, I need something else on my mind. I asked Dr. Gale. She said it would be fine as long as I observe the usual restrictions and call her if anything out of the ordinary happens."

"Okay," Castle responded. "I'll cross my fingers for a nice juicy murder."

"As long as you don't do it while you're driving," Kate teased.

* * *

Toni Gonzales stepped on the elevator at the Twelfth right after Kate and Castle stepped off, the tiniest twinge tugging upward on her lips. Esposito stood not far away, grinning like a pumpkin. "Looks like someone might have had a good afternoon," Castle observed softly. "Maybe he'll have less of a grouch on."

"We can hope," Kate whispered back. "Hey Espo! Any new bodies - besides your friend the D.A.?" she asked at normal volume.

"Yeah," Esposito replied. "Actually you have more than a passing acquaintance with our vic."

"But he's not one you'll miss," Ryan chimed in before Kate had a chance to react. "The guy's a lowlife by the name of Logan Meech. You busted him a half dozen times."

"That's why Toni, um, A.D.A. Gonzalez was here," Esposito added. "She had charges pending against the scumbag. He was caught running a charity the major recipient of which was his own bank account. We were thinking some of his contributors might be suspects. She had a list of people he ripped off. Some of them are coming in now, if you want to get in on the questioning."

Kate's eyes lit in anticipation. "Let's get to it."

A/N Logan Meech was minor character in _Lucky Stiff_. He had been arrested by Beckett multiple times.


	61. Chapter 61

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 61

Octavia O'Brian twisted her handkerchief as she sat on the edge of her chair opposite Castle and Beckett. "Logan seemed so nice. I mean I've been taking my cleaning to his place for years and he usually did a good job. When he started raising money for a youth center to keep the boys in the neighborhood away from Finn and the Westies, I thought it would be a great thing. But he just kept collecting money and nothing happened. I thought maybe Finn was blocking his efforts, but in his own way Finn tries to keep the neighborhood clean. There are no drugs. The Westies do charge a fee to keep trouble away from local businesses, but if it's paid, the businesses are safe. Some of the regular customer's at Finn's bar - I fill in for a barmaid there sometimes - told me they didn't think Finn would have an objection to a youth center, but as far they could tell, Meech wasn't actually building one. They didn't think Finn would tolerate someone pulling a scam on his turf. Finn could have sent someone to talk to Meech."

"Talk?" Beckett asked skeptically. "When Finn sends someone to convey his opinion, they generally do more than talk."

"Well the only word I heard was 'talk'." Octavia insisted. "If Finn had anything else in mind, he kept it to himself."

Beckett thanked Octavia and let her go. "You think Finn is behind this?" Castle wondered, once Octavia had gone.

Beckett pushed her hair behind her ear while she thought. "I don't know. We saw how Finn operates when a guy from another gang tried to sell drugs in his neighborhood. Bruises, burns, broken ribs, but the warning wasn't lethal. He doesn't like to attract that kind of attention if he can help it. Lanie did find signs that Meech had been beaten up a couple of weeks before his murder. If he ignored a warning from Finn, Finn might have escalated, but I have a feeling Meech had more enemies than Flynn. We need to keep talking to the other people he scammed."

The woman in the interrogation lounge couldn't have looked less like a suspect. She was comfortably rounded everywhere, with cheeks whose rosiness had been abetted by old style rouge and white hair that curled around her face. Castle was considering asking if she wanted to trade cookie recipes when Kate came in with her leather folder, taking the chair opposite the elder woman. "Mrs. Murphy, we understand that you were a contributor to the Meech fund for a neighborhood youth center."

"Oh yes," Mrs. Murphy responded enthusiastically. "Such a lovely idea giving the boys something to do. I was so sorry to hear of Mr. Meech's passing. But of course you hear so much about such things these days. I suppose that's why you're here, dear."

"Yes," Beckett agreed quickly. "Did you see a lot of Mr. Meech?"

"I took my church clothes to him every week. He had one of those old fashioned steam presses that does such a nice job. He was very fond of it."

Beckett recalled arresting Meech for trying to grill cheese someone in that press. "I'm sure he was. Mrs. Murphy, can you think of anyone who might have wanted to hurt Mr. Meech? Did you hear anyone threaten him?"

Mrs. Murphy grabbed Kate's hand. "I can't say that I ever saw or heard anyone threaten him. But a couple of weeks ago when I brought in my things, he was not moving well at all and he had bruises on his face. He said he's been in an accident, but the bruises looked more like they'd been caused by a fist. My late husband was very fond of watching fights. I know what such things look like."

"Thank you Mrs. Murphy. You've been very helpful. Kate started to hand her a card. "If you think of anything else, please give me a call."

"I will my dear," Mrs. Murphy responded, a look of concern crossing her face. "Your hands are very warm. Your face is flushed too. Are you well, Detective?"

"Just fine," Kate assured her.

Castle put a hand on Kate's forehead as soon as Mrs. Murphy left. "You're not fine. You're running a fever. If you don't call Dr. Gale, and right now, I will."

"Alright Castle, but I actually do feel fine." Dr. Gale's office took a message but informed Kate that Gale had been called away for an emergency delivery and would get back to her as soon as she could.

"The hell with that!" Castle responded angrily. "Let's call Morris!"

Morris' voice came through the speaker of Castle's cell. "I'm not too surprised by your call. Ms. Beckett's immune system is highly sensitized and may be recognizing the antibody as foreign. An immune reaction often presents as a fever. That would be similar to the reactions that some people get from vaccines. Tell me Ms. Beckett, do you run a fever when you get a flu shot or a DPT booster?"

"I do," Kate admitted, "just for a day or two."

"I thought so," Morris returned. "Now what we have to confirm is that you're attacking the antibody but not succeeding in harming the baby's cells. We can do that just by looking at your blood. There will be some fetal cells in it, as there were before. But it would be best to wait until we can see a fuller scope of the reaction, so it would be better if you weren't drawn until tomorrow, either here or at Dr. Gale's office. Until then it would be unwise to take anything to mask the reaction, but if the fever makes you too uncomfortable, a cool bath or shower would be fine. You can call me again if you have any more concerns and I'm sure Dr. Gale will get back to you the minute she's free. She's extremely conscientious."

Castle smirked as Morris ended the call. "I have no doubt Morris admires Gale's conscientiousness, along with her other qualities. But right now that doesn't help you you. The bath's not a bad idea. Let's go back to the loft. You can use some of your favorite bubbles. I can even wash your back."

"Castle I like my baths hot. And sitting around at the loft until tomorrow would drive me crazy. I'll be a lot more comfortable working. So let's have Espo get with his buddies in gangs and find out who Finn's current enforcer is. I doubt it, but if Meech didn't behave, whoever it is might have come back to finish the job. We can talk to the rest of the people on Toni Gonzales' list."

"If that's what you want," Castle agreed grudgingly. "But I'm watching you and I have Morris and Gale on speed dial."

"Castle, of that I have no doubt."

Neil McGinty's face had seen better days. His ears were flattened and his nose canted to the left from multiple poorly healed breaks. His knuckles looked equally abused. "When I was a kid in Hell's kitchen," he explained, "you wanted to stay out of trouble, you got into Golden Gloves, took your anger out in the ring. Not these days. Kids grow up. If they can't make it into college, they go to work for Finn. Damn shame. I was gonna put in a program at Meech's center. Knew the man had been trouble but I thought he'd reformed. Should have known better, big a thief as he always was."

"When did you figure out he was scamming you?" Beckett asked.

"I didn't. Finn did. He let it be known that no one could operate on his turf but him. I heard one of his boys gave Meech a nice little demonstration too. After that Meech stopped asking for contributions."

"So Meech had already stopped soliciting for the center when he was killed?" Castle clarified.

"Oh yeah," McGinty confirmed. "If Meech was making any money, he was getting it for getting stains out of shirts."

"Castle," Beckett mused, once McGinty was on his way, "if McGinty was right and Meech had shut down his operation, Finn would have had no reason to take him out. Meech's murder may have nothing to do with Meech's charity fraud. Something else was going on."

Castle nodded slowly. "Yeah, but what?"

"That," Beckett declared, "is exactly what we're going to find out."


	62. Chapter 62

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 62

"This is it. I'm selling out and leaving the neighborhood," Connor O'Malley declared.

"Why is that Mr. O'Malley?" Beckett asked.

"I've been getting offers for months. All of us on the block have, including Logan Meech. I grew up in Hell's Kitchen. My history is there. My friends are there. Same with Meech, although Finn from the Westies was certainly not happy about Meech's latest racket. But as long as he got his cut of Meech's other activities, he left him alone."

Castle leaned forward in his chair. "Offers from whom?"

"O'Malley shrugged his shoulders. "Don't really know. The letters came from a law firm, Finney and O'Queen. They are representing some undisclosed client. Up until now I just tossed them, but now I'm gonna give them a call."

* * *

"Time for the nasty needle, Kate," Castle announced after L.T. had shown O'Malley out. "The nurse at Dr. Gale's office is waiting."

"You know," Castle said as he navigated the short drive to Gale's practice, "I think Finney and O'Queen, or at least their client, might be the key to this whole thing. They wanted to buy up property on Meech's block, but if Meech's phony campaign for a youth center made the residents hopeful that property values might rise, they might have been hesitant to sell."

"But Meech had stopped asking for money, Castle," Kate pointed out.

"Well maybe they didn't know that. It had only been a couple of weeks. O'Malley was still standing firm. Maybe some others were as well," Castle suggested. "Kate, we need to find out who the mysterious client is."

"Castle, how do you propose to do that? Finney and O'Queen have attorney client privilege and we don't have enough to get a court order to compel them to break it."

"We don't have to. If property has changed hands, it's a matter of public record," Castle pointed out. "We look at real estate transactions on Meech's block and see what we find."

"That's good, Castle, we can start as soon as we get back to the precinct. We should probably look for any correspondence Meech might have had too," Kate added. "I'm gonna call Ryan and have him get it out of Meech's apartment. I'll have Espo check if the post office held anything when Meech was reported dead."

* * *

Castle stretched and rubbed the back of his neck as he bent over the computer screen at Beckett's desk. "How's it going Babe?" Kate asked, returning from the conference room where Meech's letters were piled.

"Not an original turn of phrase I know," Castle replied, "but I'm trying to make my way through a web of lies and deceit. The acquisitions on Meech's block have been made through holding companies held by holding companies. I've been trying to work my way to the actual owner, but none of the companies are public, so the information is limited. Someone has gone to a great deal of trouble to hide their identity. Did you find anything?"

"There were a couple of checks for the youth center in the letters Espo got from the post office. Apparently some people hadn't gotten the message that he'd stopped collecting. One of them was ten dollars from Mrs. Murphy."

"Poor woman," Castle lamented, "faithful to the end. Well she knows now he isn't going to cash it. And speaking of that, are you about ready to cash it in for the day? I have some resources that are available on my computer at the loft, that I don't have here."

Beckett's eyebrow rose. "Castle should I know about those resources?"

Castle shifted uncomfortably in Beckett's chair. "Probably not. But they may get me to our mystery buyer faster."

"Alright," Kate agreed. "I'm out of letters and other ideas right now anyway. I just don't want to be doing nothing and stuck thinking about the tests on M.G.'s cells too much."

"When did the nurse say you'd be hearing about results?"

"She didn't know, she just said Dr. Gale would let us know as soon as possible."

Castle leaned back thoughtfully. "There may be another way to go about this. Anyone who's planning to build on that block would have to go through the City Planner's office. I know Bob Weldon has a guy from there he's been wanting to bring to our poker nights. I could try to set up an impromptu game for tonight. This is usually a down night for Bob, we could get lucky."

"How about the work you wanted to do on your computer?" Kate wondered.

"Assuming I can get the game going, I can do it until Bob and his buddy arrive. Then if I need to continue, you can sit in for me. You play as well as I do. And even as ruggedly handsome as I am, they'll probably still prefer looking at your face." Castle pulled out his cell phone. "I'll call Bob now."

* * *

Kate checked out the table. There were plenty of chips, both poker and tortilla. A bar had been set up on a nearby cart. For herself she has a tall glass with club soda, ice, and a twist of lime. Outside the family and the precinct, her pregnancy was not public knowledge. Castle assured her that the mayor had not been told. It would look as if she was just drinking with the boys. Virgin drinks were a trick she'd used more than once undercover and she was more than capable of giving the impression of a buzz while perfectly sober. When Mayor Weldon and Bill Banning from the Planners' Office arrived, she apologized that Castle had some last minute business come up with his publisher and she would be taking his place until he was free. The men clearly had no objections. Kate stuck the tip of her pinky in the corner of her mouth as Banning gleefully raked in a pot she'd let him win. "So Bill, is anything exciting happening in the Planners office?"

"Actually there is," Bill replied, grateful for what appeared to be the rapt interest of a stunning woman. "There is the possibility of new development in Hell's Kitchen. A number of businesses there are a bit past their time. They still actually have a video store. Most of the apartments are roach motels. There's a new group that has come in, wants to tear down a whole block, replace it with modern lofts and upscale walk-to shopping. The plan they've presented could revitalize the neighborhood."

"Well it is bad neighborhood. So the people there now must be anxious to relocate?" Kate prompted.

Bill fidgeted uneasily. "Most of them are. I'm told most of the necessary properties have been acquired, but there are still a few holdouts. The developer is trying very hard to strike reasonable, even generous deals with them."

Castle slipped into a seat at the table and took a swig from a once iced bottle of local micro-brew, now slick with condensation. "Sorry I'm late to the party. I hope my beautiful fiancée has kept you entertained."

"She's more fun at the table than you are, Ricky. Bill was just discussing the new development for Hell's kitchen," Weldon added. "Who's behind that, Bill?"

"A company called Rose properties, they're a subsidiary of Dean Industries."

Castle's wet bottle slipped from his hand, dowsing his lap. He made a point of wincing. "I am so sorry, but also glad you saw how I actually got wet. I just need to change." Rising again from his seat he gave Kate a quick kiss on the lips. "Take their money while I'm gone."

Hurriedly pulling on fresh slacks, Castle rushed to his computer. He'd discovered Rose Properties, but Dean Industries was the final piece. Finally uncovering the majority owner, he stared in disbelief at the screen.

He returned to the table where he nodded in response to Kate's questioning look and proceeded to win several large pots.


	63. Chapter 63

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 63

Castle graciously walked Bob Weldon and Bill Banning downstairs to where the Mayor's driver was waiting. In too much of a hurry to use the elevator, he rushed back up the stairs to return to Kate. She was waiting by the open door. "Castle, who is it? Who's grabbing the properties on Meech's block? Who owns Dean Industries?"

"You won't believe it. I need to show you." Castle grabbed Kate's hand and led her back to his office. He brought up a document on the big screen.

Kate's stared open mouthed. "Mrs. Murphy? That sweet old lady?"

"Not so sweet," Castle told her. "She's been the major stockholder in Dean Industries for more than thirty years. Dean's mostly been flying under the radar. There isn't much information, even from my sources, but I got a quick sketch before I came back to the table. Since they were established they've been buying up property in old neighborhoods where there were rent controlled apartments, demolishing it, and building new meccas for the gentry. They've remade dozens of what were working and middle class neighborhoods into upscale enclaves. They're one of the reasons why it's almost impossible to find affordable housing in the city. The rent controlled apartments are almost all gone and it looks like our dear old Mrs. Murphy has been a major force behind the purge."

"Is there a Mr. Murphy?" Beckett asked.

"I haven't seen a mention of him," Castle replied bringing up a subscription search engine."Oh, here. There's an archived news article from thirty-five years ago. He was an up and coming developer, had just successfully finished his first big project when he was the victim of an apparently random mugging." Castle's fingers flew over the keys. "There wasn't much of an investigation. If he hadn't been a rising star, the story wouldn't have even been newsworthy. As far as I can tell, no perpetrator was ever identified. It's a cold case, ice cold."

"Castle, we're going to warm it up. There could be a pattern here. There could be a whole string of murders that were never connected."

"Hey, slow down Kate," Castle cautioned. "It's after midnight. M.G. needs some rest and so does his mother. You'll have access to the archives when we go to the precinct. Now you have a trail to follow. You can pick it up in the morning - or at least later in the morning."

"Castle," Kate protested, "we just had a break in the case. I'm wired. How am I supposed to go to bed?"

He flexed his hands in front of her face. "Magic fingers at your service. How about a full body massage until you're relaxed enough to sleep?"

Kate stroked his cheek. "Castle, that's so sweet."

"Just taking care of my son and his mama. Go lie down. I'll turn down the lights and light some candles. I'll get the aromatherapy oil Mother uses to relax. That's her latest thing."

Kate smiled. "Yes, I've noticed."

As the scent of lavender wafted through the bedroom, Kate realized she hadn't known just how tight her muscles were until they began to relax under Castle's carefully warmed hands. The case was exciting, but as hard as she tried to push the worry to the back of her mind, she knew her tension sprang from her uncertainty over M.G.. As the weeks went by, she'd grown more and more attached to the tiny presence within her. Attempting to shield herself from potential disappointment, she tried not to make plans, or dream about her impending motherhood. But the thoughts had come despite her best efforts. She pictured M.G. giggling as Castle's incredibly mobile face stretched itself into outrageous expressions to amuse him She could see him as a toddler in his first suit, climbing onto his Grandfather Jim's lap. She imagined him tightly grasping strands of his sister's brilliant hair in his fists. Then there were the other visions, of a tiny figure in an incubator hooked to a maze of tubes, or a gravestone bearing his name. Those were the scenes she worked hardest to push away, but the ones that insisted on intruding into her consciousness.

Castle interrupted his efforts and dropped down to sit on the edge of the bed next to her. "Kate, you're putting a lie to my impressive skills. You're tensing up all over again. This is more than anticipation about the case. There's something else going on here. Talk to me."

"Castle, it's just that every time I start to relax a little about M.G., another complication comes up. I've had friends who were pregnant who were ecstatic, even when they were throwing up. They'd go to stores and coo over baby clothes. They'd read up on educational toys and safety seats. They'd even try to figure out what would be the best way to start a college fund. I'm afraid to do any of that. I want someone in a white coat to tell me everything's going to be just fine, but no one can do that, Castle. I just have to wait. We just have to wait, and waiting is the thing I hate most."

Castle gathered her into his arms. "When Meredith was pregnant with Alexis, she was doing a play with a group of other young actors, off, off, off Broadway. She was playing an unwed mother in dire straits. She loved the role. It was perfect for her. She overacted the hell out of it. But the crew was mostly young too and learning their craft along with the actors. I was watching a rehearsal one day and one of the sound guys forgot to tape down a cable. Meredith tripped and fell. That was scary enough, but then she told me she was having contractions. I think I broke every speed law the city has ever passed getting her to the hospital. While the doctor was checking her out, I couldn't sit, I couldn't stand still, I could barely breathe. No armed gunman has ever been as terrifying as that was."

"What happened?" Beckett asked. "Did Meredith go into early labor? Could they stop it? Was Alexis premature?"

"No, from the beginning Alexis has always been the epitome of punctuality. She was born exactly on her due date with no complications. Her Apgar was a 10. She was perfect. Meredith was just having Braxton Hicks contractions. They were normal. But I will never forget the gut-clenching fear of that moment. Fear for a child, even one who isn't here yet, is like nothing else in this universe. I understand what you're feeling. I feel it too. And I'm here for you and for M.G., every minute, every second, whatever happens. Kate you are the strongest person I know, and when things get tough, I'm not too bad myself. As partners we're unstoppable and we'll find a way through whatever we need to together."

Castle drew her closer until their lips met and they rolled back on the bed entwined as one. Under the soothing lavender mantle, they found the respite of sleep in each others' embrace.


	64. Chapter 64

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 64

The contents of the bankers box containing the meager evidence in Dean Murphy's murder were laid out on the conference table in front of Beckett. Castle came through the door with a copy of the autopsy report he had taken to the morgue for Lanie to review. Kate studied the grooves etching his face. "Babe, what's wrong?"

"Kate," he asked hesitantly, "do you remember the wounds Dr, Murray described on your mother, the killing wound and the other wounds to disguise it? They were Dick Coonan's signature."

"Castle, why would those be relevant? This murder happened more than a decade before my mother was killed. Dick Coonan would have been a kid or just getting into the military. He couldn't have done it."

"No, you're right," Castle agreed, "but someone with a background similar to Coonan's with similar training could have. And Lanie thinks they did. Kate, she put in a call to Dr. Murray to confirm her suspicions. With everything you've got to handle with M.G., this has got to be the world's worst time for a connection like this to come up. After what happened with Dick Coonan and your mother's murder, can you handle this? If not, we could just pack everything back in the box and stick it on Esposito's desk. He'd understand Kate. He'd more than understand."

Kate swallowed as images of her mother lying in an alley swam before her eyes. She straightened in her chair, determined not to give in to the trauma of those memories. "Castle, lots of people are trained to kill by the military. If there was a contract killer, especially if Mrs. Murphy used him to kill her husband, I need to know. If there's a pattern of killings here, like there was with Coonan, I need to know that too. That animal might be still out there. He could give us Mrs. Murphy - damn! I can't keep calling her that. It's too respectful. What's her first name?"

"Piper," Castle replied. "Makes sad sense, leading people down the wrong path."

"Yeah," Beckett agreed, "but we're going to take away Piper's flute."

Music suddenly emanated from the cell in Beckett's pocket.

"New ring tone," Castle noted as Kate pulled out her phone.

"Special alert for Dr. Gale, it's _Pins and Needles_ ," Kate offered, a hint of mischief in her eyes. "It's a text. It just says 'Good news,' and to call her when I get a chance."

"When you get a chance?" Castle repeated as Kate dialed. "Is she kidding?"

Dr. Gale picked up the phone on the first ring and Kate put it on speaker. "Kate, good, you're available. Is Mr. Castle there with you?"

"I'm here," Castle chimed in.

"Good," Gale replied, sounding satisfied with herself. "I wanted to tell both of you. I just got a call from Stephen, uh Dr. Morris. He informed me that his group has completed the analysis of the fetal cells in Kate's blood. There's no sign of breakdown. The antibody is protecting them from attack. Now we're going to monitor this situation carefully. The baby's cells will be cycling a couple of times before birth. We may have to give him a couple of booster injections, but all-in-all the signs are extremely hopeful for a full term healthy child."

The phone dropped from Kate's hand to the table as Castle leaned in for a kiss.

"Kate, Mr. Castle, are you still there?" Gale asked. "Do you have any questions?"

Kate pulled back and picked up the phone. "Um, sorry. The phone slipped."

"When do you need to see Kate again?" Castle asked.

"Unless any unexpected concerns come up, we can make it a month. Kate, you can just call the scheduling desk to set it up. I look forward to not seeing you until then," Gale added, a suggestion of humor in her voice.

Castle pulled Kate in for another kiss as the call ended. "Kate, that's great! Once a month is so normal!"

Kate snorted. "Castle, when have we ever been normal? But I may change Gale's ring tone again. Hopefully no more needles for a while. You know what? Suddenly I am starving!"

"It does take fuel to catch a killer. You want me to make a run to Remy's? Get you a burger?" Castle offered.

Kate had already begun to re-examine the evidence. "Yeah, Castle that would be great. I think there are some things the lab can do now they couldn't do when Dean Murphy was killed. I'm going to get them going."

Kate was sitting at her desk when Castle returned with a large paper bag and a drink carrier. "Castle, that looks like lunch for four people. What did you get?"

"You said you were starved," Castle responded. "And it's lunch for three, counting M.G.." Castle put down the drinks. "You get a large strawberry shake, calcium for his bones. There's a water there too, to keep you hydrated. I just got a Dr. Pepper. Now," he added, opening the bag and unloading it in front of her, "maxi-burger for iron and extra large fries for fun, but I did ask them to go easy on the salt."

"I see you also got your maxi-cheeseburger," Kate noticed.

"I need the energy to chase after you. So what have you been up to while I was gone?"

Kate shoved a fry in her mouth before answering. "I was looking at Dean's clothes. At the time of the murder, they were tested for blood that wasn't his, in case the killer nicked himself stabbing Dean. They didn't find any."

"We'd expect that with a professional killer," Castle offered.

"Uh hm," Beckett agreed. "It fits. But that doesn't mean the killer didn't leave some DNA. They never tested for that. They couldn't back then and the killer wouldn't have worried about it either. I have them doing it now. I'm also looking for homicides of owners of properties immediately preceding their acquisition by Dean Industries. If I find matching M.O.'s, we've nailed our pattern."

"Wow, that's a huge job, do you want some help?"

"Fast as you read, Castle, I was counting on it."

"Kate, this is going to be more than speed reading. I was thinking of calling Tanu in on it as well. This is just the sort of job he really loves, digging into old records for new clues."

"You going to give him another Strawberry Shortcake?" Kate teased.

"If he helps us find a hit man and put Piper away," Castle replied, "I'll give him two."

Kate slapped his hand as Castle reached over to steal a french fry. "You, Baby Daddy, are only eating for one." She held up a fry and threaded it between his lips. "But I suppose if we're going to crack this case, you need to keep up your strength too."

Castle flexed a bicep, surprisingly large for a writer. "All my strength is at your service, Detective Beckett. And as Yoda would say, 'Crack this case, we will.'"


	65. Chapter 65

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 65

"How are you doing with Dean Industries property acquisition through murder?" Beckett asked as Castle joined her at the precinct.

"I have two possible names," Castle replied, "and Tanu came up with three more. How about the lab work?"

There were two kinds of DNA on Dean's clothes. The lab is assuming that the one there in largest quantity is his, especially since it matches the blood. There were traces of the other one. After all this time they really had to work to amplify it. It doesn't match anything in our system, or the regular military database, but the lab was able to phenotype it. There may be a break there. Our killer is definitely male with red hair and multiple alleles for height, probably at least six four if not taller. Espo is reaching out to his special ops contacts to see if anyone remembers someone like that. With the similarity in technique between Big Red and Dick Coonan, we're hoping he might have been a mentor or instructor. Give me the names you and Tanu got and I can run them."

Castle pulled out his phone. "Emailing now. I need to go. I wanted to see you first, but Gina needs to go over some edits for the latest chapters of Naked Heat and then I promised Kurt I'd go over his latest ideas for the gifts for our guests. He was talking about packets of free market coffee and chocolate. You want me to send you pictures?"

"Oh God, don't tempt me with coffee. You can send me pictures of the chocolate. Better still if he's got samples..."

"Roger that," Castle laughed. "M.G. can start early on his appreciation of the finer things. I'm thinking super dark. Ooh the dark side! Maybe we can have the chocolate shaped like Darth Vader." Castle caught the look on Kate's face. "Okay, no Darth Vader." Castle leaned down to kiss her hair. "Our favors will have the Beckett seal of approval."

* * *

With a sturdy six foot frame and steel gray crew cut, Kurt looked more like the career Marine he had been for much of his life than a wedding planner. But the strong sense of order gained from his past seemed if anything to support his current choice of career. Castle arrived more than slightly out of sorts from the changes Gina had demanded to his latest submissions, to find every sample neatly laid out and labeled as to price and lead time. Castle studied the array. Clearly superheroes were as unlikely to gain acceptance for their wedding as Darth Vader was. Kate preferred to keep her nerdish tendencies hidden from most of the world. He surveyed the other possibilities. Entwined initials would be out too. Kate was unconditional about keeping both her name and her separate identity. Troubled lines formed between Castle's brows as he stared at the assortment.

"Nothing working for you?" Kurt asked.

Castle sighed. "It's what will work for Kate that I'm worried about. She wants the ceremony to be magical yet dignified. I'm not sure how those things work together."

"How about stars?" Kurt asked.

"No Star Wars!" Castle came back hurriedly. "She'd take a light saber to me."

Kurt laughed. "Not that kind. Stars in the heaven, the celestial sphere. The tables could be constellations. The favors could be star shaped in midnight blue and white. Kate was already set on plain white for the table cloths but we could change the napkins to midnight blue also. We make the flower arrangements dark blue, we can always dye hot house carnations, and then have just a light sprinkle of silver on them so they sparkle. The place cards haven't been printed yet. We change them to dark blue with silver lettering. You could continue the theme with the groomsmen and the bridesmaids wearing dark blue. Kate could have stars in her hair and a blue and silver bouquet. If you and Kate have the ceremony indoors and we can arrange it with Van Amstel, we can even have a shower of stars come down from the ceiling after you and Kate say your vows. It would all be very magical, but not undignified."

"Mmm," Castle agreed thoughtfully. "Dark blue and stars would resonate with the cop in Kate too. Maybe the groomsmen could actually wear their dress uniforms. No tuxedo rentals. If you can email me the details with whatever images you can find, I can put it to her tonight. It'll give us a break from our murder investigation. You wouldn't have run across a tall red headed stone killer in your military adventures would you?"

Kurt stiffened and stared at Castle with narrowed eyes. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah, but he's part of a case that goes back over thirty years. He's implicated in at least one murder and possibly a lot more. Does that ring a bell with you?"

Kurt's lips formed a hard line as he remembered. "There was a guy. He was gone by the time I joined up but I heard a lot of stories, more like legends actually. The guy was dark ops, like what they call a wet boy, an assassin. He was supposed to have been six six with flaming red hair. You wouldn't think someone with that coloring and size could be stealthy, but according to the stories he was. He could take someone out with one thrust of a knife before they knew he was there. They called him Erik the Red, as much about blood as his hair. Supposedly he had a few protegés too, that he trained before he left the service."

"Did he or those protegés have names?" Castle inquired eagerly.

"The only name I heard was a guy kicked out on a psych discharge. He didn't know when to put down the knife, or at least didn't want to. It was Pertwee."

"Like the guy who played Doctor Who?" Castle queried.

Kurt shrugged. "I'm not into Sci Fi, but I remember Pertwee because it's incongruous. It sounds like some kind of bird that would chirp away on your windowsill, not like a killer."

"Thanks man, you may just have cracked the mystery of our wedding décor and our case. I need to get back to the precinct."

* * *

"Erik the Red and Pertwee," Esposito repeated skeptically as Castle wrote the names on the murder board. "From a wedding planner?"

"A Marine wedding planner," Castle pointed out. "Can you just check them out, Espo?"

Beckett grabbed a folder from her desk. "Wait Castle. I saw something about a Pertwee." Kate flipped through the pages. "Castle, Pertwee was Piper Murphy's maiden name. That can't be a coincidence."

"No, it can't," Castle agreed. "Our killer Pertwee is some kind of a relative of Piper Murphy. He pulls in his mentor, Erik the Red, to do her dirty work. Then when Erik retires or dies, he takes over the job himself. It all fits."

"Fitting and proving are two different things Castle," Kate reminded him. "So far this is all conjecture. We don't have one iota of actual evidence."

Castle's shoulders began to sway with excitement. "But we can get it, Beckett. We invite the sweet little old lady back for a chat and offer her coffee, tea, or whatever. You could even use giving back her check to Meech as an excuse. We get the DNA off her cup. Run it against any DNA from the cases Tanu and I dug up and look for a relative match. If the lab finds one, we hunt down Pertwee the Knife."

Castle, really, Pertwee the Knife?" Esposito jibed.

"If you come up with something better," Castle retorted, "you let me know."


	66. Chapter 66

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 66

"Piper Murphy's on her way. The unis are giving her a ride," Beckett reported.

"Okay," Castle acknowledged. "You've been working through Kurt's ideas about the case. While we're waiting for the Lied Piper, you said you wanted some time to think about his ideas for the wedding. So what do you think?"

"I think the stars from the ceiling are a bit much, especially since I want to keep it outside if we possibly can."

"Noted. What about the rest?"

"I do like weaving in the cop thing and I'm sure Ryan and Esposito will be very grateful not to have to shell out for tuxedos. What about your best man? He's not a cop."

"Neither is your maid of honor or your bridesmaids, but it's not like we have things in the shapes of guns and badges. It's just the boys in blue are honored for being boys in blue." Castle tilted his head gazing questioningly at Kate, even as she turned her eyes in another direction. "That's not what's bothering you."

"Castle, I'll be about six months pregnant. Even as full as the skirt is on my dress, the baby bump will show. A pregnant bride flanked by cops? Won't it look a little like a shotgun wedding?"

"Not unless your father is carrying one, although I imagine a baseball bat might be more his style."

"Castle," Kate interjected, rolling her eyes.

Castle laid a hand on her shoulder. "No really Kate, it's a small wedding. Most of the people there will know you. We are talking about Kate Beckett here. How could someone who's known you for even five minutes think you could be forced into anything, with a shotgun or even a howitzer? The woman I love is strong, independent, and infuriatingly stubborn. It is the 21st century, even if we don't have flying cars and colonies on the moon, and you are the epitome of the kickass modern woman. The choice is yours, always has been. I can't imagine anyone doubting that. But if it makes you feel better, you can snap cuffs on me with the ring. That would let people know who's being captured."

Kate's lips tugged upwards. "I think we can save the cuffs for afterward. Yeah, tell Kurt to go ahead with his plan. Now we better set the stage to execute ours. I have just the china cup Piper should love."

* * *

Piper Murphy sipped her tea appreciatively. "This is really quite lovely. Dublin Morning?"

Castle nodded. "You have an excellent palate Mrs. Murphy."

"Well I'm sure I'm not here to talk about tea, how may I help you, Detective? Mr. Castle?"

"Well, first," Beckett told her, producing an envelope, "I wanted to give you this."

Piper peeked inside. "My check to Logan Meech." A tear squeezed itself from the corner of her eye. "The poor man won't be cashing it. I suppose now there will never be a youth center."

Castle handed Piper a box of tissues while Beckett continued. "I'm afraid that's true, Mrs. Murphy. Tell me, now that you've had time to think about it, is there anyone who would have wanted to prevent the center from being built?"

Piper dabbed at her eyes and blew her nose, depositing her tissue in a nearby wastebasket before replying. "I'm so sorry, Detective, I really can't think of anyone at all. I wish I could be more helpful."

"It's all right Mrs. Murphy," Beckett assured her, "you've done the best you could. I can have the officers drive you home."

"You so got her!" Castle exclaimed gleefully as Beckett pulled on gloves and deposited Piper's cup and discarded tissue into evidence bags.

"Mm, I wasn't even thinking about tissues, Castle. Good move!"

"Well she brought it on herself with the phony tears. Although," Castle offered, "she is a pretty decent actress, I'd give her four out of five stars."

"More like life behind bars, I hope," Beckett returned. "I'll send these to the lab along the with stuff from the cases you and Tanu dug up and we'll see what they find."

"So you want to celebrate? Push the limits?" Castle proposed. "Maybe pop a sparkling cider?"

"Maybe later, Castle. I have to write up a report for Captain Montgomery justifying why I'm digging into old cases."

"Of course, paperwork, the scourge of copdom. It's times like these I'm glad I don't really work for the N.Y.P.D.. But I do have some writing of my own to do. The changes Gina wanted are going to change what happens in my next chapter, actually in the rest of the book, so I have to redo my outline and do some re-writing. See you later? Mother's going to be at the theater and Alexis is going to an overnight study party. She and Paige have a big history test coming up." Castle wiggled his eyebrows. "I could pick up Chinese and we could check our fortunes."

"Sounds good, Castle," Beckett agreed. "I'll call you before I leave."

* * *

Castle hit save on his latest additions to Naked Heat. Grabbing his jacket and keys, he headed down the sidewalk, his long strides rapidly covering the three blocks to the Golden Palace. A couple of times he thought he sensed something, but when he looked back in the semi-darkness of the New York City evening, he couldn't see anything threatening. He continued uneasily on his way, his hand curling around a container of pepper spray in his pocket. A cat howled in an alley behind him as he approached the restaurant. Castle turned, catching the faint glint of a streetlight reflected from a knife blade. He brought up his canister into a balaclava covered face, as his attacker sprang.

The sharply honed blade penetrated Castle's pea coat and the skin covering his ribs, before the it was involuntarily pulled back as stinging capsicum penetrated the knife wielder's eyes and his mask. Castle pushed him away and ran for the entrance of the restaurant, pulling out his cell to call the precinct as the startled hostess gaped at the blood beginning to stain his coat.

* * *

Kate bent over Castle as a paramedic bandaged his chest at an isolated table in the Golden Palace. "Omigod, Babe, if that knife had gone a little deeper, it would have been in your heart."

Castle winced as he reached up to brush back the hair that had fallen in her face. "It didn't, Kate. Hey, I did what you taught me. I got him off me and ran the hell away." Castle put on his best old western accent. "Shucks lady, it's just a flesh wound. I'll be right as rain."

"I'd like to hear a doctor tell me that," Kate told him, smiling in spite of herself. "But Babe, before we get you to the hospital, what can I put out about your attacker?"

"Kate, it was dark and he had a mask. But in a way that might help us. It got a good soaking when I sprayed him, so his face is going to be burned where it stayed in contact with the pepper oil. His eyes won't look too great either. If any of the cameras around here picked anything up, we should be able to spot him. Kate, we must be getting close to something. Otherwise, why would anyone come after me? Oh God, they might come after you too!"

"Castle, until we get this guy, we'll both be spending our time surrounded by cops. Now let's get you out of here."

"Fine," Castle agreed, "but don't forget to pick up our order. I asked for double fortune cookies."

"Yeah Castle. I'll get it," Kate confirmed. "I have a feeling we might need them."


	67. Chapter 67

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 67

Kate awakened first and rolled over to to gaze with concern at her still sleeping fiancé. He wore his softest pajamas, but the bulk of the bandage across his ribs could easily be detected beneath. The doctor said Castle had been lucky, very lucky. The knife had not only failed to reach his heart, if hadn't managed to puncture a lung. The blade had been honed to such a brittle sharpness that a flake of it had broken off scraping against Castle's rib. The doctors had removed it and it was already in the crime lab, chain of custody carefully documented. If Castle's attacker was caught and a match made to the weapon, no slimy attorney would get it thrown out in court. Castle shifted restlessly, his face grimacing as the pull of his sutures penetrated his sleep. Kate smoothed the lines on his brow with her fingertips, brushing sweaty strands of thick hair from his forehead. Lashes most women would envy fluttered at the touch of her hand on his face. "Kate."

"How are you, Babe?"

"We always seem to be asking each other that. I'll live, but it might be nice not to have to fight off any muggers for a couple of days."

Kate pulled herself up. "You'll get your wish on that one. Montgomery's got a unit outside and they'll stay there while we track down Jackass the Knife. Ryan ordered the video last night. He'll be scrubbing it today. Espo's been conducting a canvass of the neighborhood. There's a notice out to emergency rooms and clinics too, to look for facial burns and inflamed eyes."

Castle struggled to prop himself on his elbows. "Sounds like you and the boys have everything handled. Not much for us to do at the precinct."

"Nothing for us to do at the precinct, Castle," Kate corrected. "The boys are taking care of it all, with some help from Karpowski, if they need it. The DNA results on Piper and the cold cases aren't in yet and the lab said not to expect them today, so you are under house arrest and I'm going to stay on top of you."

Ooh, kinky," Castle responded. "Are you going to cuff me to the bed too?"

"Only if I can't keep you in line by other means."

"Well that sounds promising. What did you have in mind?"

"I thought maybe breakfast in bed, with or without pain pills, your choice. Then we could sack out on the couch together for the marathon of your choice."

Castle quirked an eyebrow. "Marathon?"

"Video, Castle. I'm not helping you tear your stitches open. We can do Star Trek, Classic or Next Generation, Star Wars, Matrix or whatever. Anything but the Hard Kill movies. I don't want you playing Rico Cruz and trying to act out the fight scenes."

"How about Deep Space Nine?" Castle inquired. "Cassidy Yates does look a lot like the captain who took over IAD when Donovan was knocked off. That makes for some amazingly convoluted thoughts."

"Deep Space Nine it is," Kate agreed.

"And popcorn?" Castle asked hopefully.

"After you finish your breakfast."

"Wow," Castle observed, "you really are practicing for motherhood. Okay, I'll be good - for now."

"I feel sorry for Odo sleeping in a bucket," Castle decided drowsily after four hours of space adventure.

"Why?" Beckett asked.

"Lonely," Castle murmured, falling back asleep, his hand in the popcorn bowl.

Kate gently eased it away, pulled a throw over him, and turned off the video. She retreated to the kitchen before picking up her cell. "Hey Ryan, what have you got?"

"We got some security video from a drugstore four blocks away," Ryan reported. "There was a guy came in there not long after Castle was attacked, red face, buying burn cream and eye wash. He paid cash, but we're running facial recognition."

"How about Espo's canvass?"

Ryan sighed. "Typical New York response. No one saw anything. How's Castle?"

"Sore, but restless. He's sleeping now."

"Best thing," Ryan opined. "I'll let you know if anything pops."

The call came the first thing the next morning. Kate took it with Castle raptly listening in. The lab had two relative matches for Piper Murphy, the most surprising of which was Erik the Red. Not quite close enough to be a full sibling, they suggested that he might be a half brother. The second was on DNA gathered from the case of a murdered previous owner of a Dean Industries property. The lab proposed that it might be from a nephew or a cousin. "A killer family!" Castle exclaimed excitedly. "Wow, this would be great in a book or even a movie. Hmm, I wonder who we'd get to play Erik, or whatever his name turns out to be. Maybe we could borrow someone from professional wrestling. Most of what those guys do is acting anyway."

"We'll have to catch them first, Castle. We don't even have facial recognition on the guy who attacked you yet." Her phone signaled a text. "Yes we do! And Ryan found DMV. He and Espo got an address and they're are taking some unis to go pick him up now."

Castle pushed back the covers. "Let's get the precinct, Kate. I want to see him hauled in."

Kate raised a skeptical brow. "Castle are you sure you're up to this?"

"Kate, I'll be fine. You'll be the grill mistress. I'll watch from observation. The most strenuous thing I'll do is make more popcorn for the Kate Beckett Gotcha Show. I don't think that's going to tear any stitches. Scout's honor."

"Castle, you've gotten me with that one before," Kate protested. "You were never a scout."

"Alright," Castle allowed, "I swear on Stan Lee, creator of all things Marvelous."

"That one I can accept, Castle," Kate conceded. "But I'm driving."

* * *

Castle gazed through the glass at the sullen man with flaming cheeks and bloodshot eyes. "At least I did some damage," he thought.

"Mr. O'Loughlin," Beckett began, passing a head shot of Castle across the table. "Why did you stab Richard Castle?"

Barry glanced at the photo."I don't know who that is and I don't know what you're talking about," he retorted. "I never stabbed nobody."

Beckett nodded. "True enough," she replied, inwardly smiling at what Castle's reaction would be to what she said next. "That was a double negative, which means you stabbed somebody."

"Huh?" Barry returned awkwardly.

"Mr. O'Loughlin," the man who attacked Mr. Castle was sprayed with pepper oil. It leaves burns. What happened to your face?"

Barry stared at her defiantly. "I got too close to a fireplace."

"Really?" Beckett threw back. "Mr. O'Loughlin we found a pepper soaked mask in a storm drain. What do you bet we'll find your DNA on it?"

"No bet," Barry sneered, "my mask went in the river."

Castle guffawed. "Not the sharpest knife in the drawer," he commented to Montgomery, who had come to join him. "Beckett got him so bad!"

Montgomery grinned. "Admission against interest. Gives us enough for a warrant to search his place and his car. Dumb as this bozo is we'll probably find something with your blood on it, maybe even the knife. Beckett certainly has the touch."

Castle grinned back. "You have no idea."


	68. Chapter 68

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 68

Beckett paced the floor in front of the white board while Castle perched on the desk watching her. "Hey Kate, I know exercise is good for M.G. But aren't you overdoing it a little? Ryan and Espo know what they're doing, so do Carl and the guys from the lab. If there's anything to find at Barry O'Loughlin's place, they'll find it."

"Castle, you know that's not always true," Kate argued. "Both of us have spotted things at crime scenes that those guys missed. I hate not being there."

"I know. So do I, or I would if I weren't almost due for another pain pill. Right now the idea of pulling out drawers and pawing through Barry's closet isn't as exciting as it might be under other circumstances."

Beckett stopped pacing and went to Castle, lightly twining her hands behind his neck. "I'm sorry Babe. There had to be a better way to make inroads into this case than a knife in your ribs but..." Kate's phone chimed. She regarded the text. "It's from Espo. He says they hit the jackpot and he has to show us something. He used a smile emoticon! Espo never uses emoticons."

"Maybe he started using them to try to soften the thick shell around the heart of A.D.A. Gonzalez," Castle suggested.

Beckett shook her head. "I can't see that working."

"Desperate times, desperate measures," Castle quipped, slipping gingerly off the desk. "Anyway, I'm gonna start some congratulatory coffee."

"Castle," Kate called after him as he started for the break room, "take your pill first."

He smiled back over his shoulder. "I love it when you worry about me. I will."

Hands covered in gloves, Esposito smacked the leather covered album down on the table in the conference room and offered gloves to Beckett and Castle. "CSU hasn't printed this yet. But I knew you'd want to see it."

"It looks like a family album," Castle said.

Esposito nodded vigorously. "Exactly what it is. This guy Barry is some kind of crazy doofus, the family screw-up. He left himself notes all around the apartment reminding him to get his act together. He hero worships the killers in the family. Wants to be just like them." Esposito flipped the book open to the first picture. "See this guy? And look who he's with."

"Tall, red hair," Castle noted. "That's Erik the Red! Oh, it says cousin Chauncy. Chauncy? That's worse than Johnny Cash's _Boy Named_ _Sue_. If someone named me that I might get violent too. Barry even listed the number of Chauncy's kills, a hundred and two!" Castle let out a whistle. "And the woman with Chauncy looks like a young version of Piper Murphy. Yeah, it says, 'Cousin Piper, our inspiration.'" Castle flipped through the pages. "He's got the Pertwees, the O'Loughlins, and Whytes. How did Whytes get in there? Must be a leftover from the occupation of Ireland. Barry listed all his murderous relatives with the numbers of kills. This is incredible!"

Esposito grinned. "Yeah, I thought you'd get off on it, Castle. There's more, but it's with CSU. Ryan stayed with them. That asshat Barry still had the knife he stabbed you with Castle. It looked like it'd been cleaned. Still smelled like bleach. But instead of getting rid of it, Barry had it wrapped in velvet like it was some kind of collectible or something. There was that flake out of it like the doctors pulled out of you. So CSU's gonna test it to confirm it's a match."

Beckett ran a gloved fingertip over the album. "This guy is some kind of twisted family historian. He's actually proud of being part of a group of murderers. That's going to be hard to turn around. But if he lawyers up, his lawyer will probably encourage him to make a deal. That's probably why they didn't send one for him. They think he'll stay quiet to protect the family honor. He didn't ask for one either. They probably ordered him not to, if he got caught. Let's get him a psych eval. If they don't think he's competent, the court will automatically assign him a guardian who will pull in a lawyer. Then if they can help us convince him to flip, we've probably got Meech's murderer and a lot more."

"Big if, but there's no one better at getting perps to spill than you, Kate," Castle told her.

We should bring Toni, uh, A.D.A. Gonzalez into the deal," Esposito suggested. "Case like this, she could make a move for D.A.. Always good to have friends in high places."

Beckett hid her smile behind her hand, knowing why Espo wanted to include the tough A.D.A.. "Espo, you should take this to CSU for printing now. Once we get all their results back, one way or another, we can invite you favorite A.D.A. to one hell of a party."

* * *

Kate awoke to go to the bathroom, but was surprised to find Castle's side of the bed empty and light shining into the bedroom from his office. As soon as she took care of her own pressing need she went to find him. In pajamas and robe, he was leaning back in his chair, his feet propped on his desk and his laptop across his thighs."

She ran her fingers lightly through his pillow tousled hair. "Couldn't sleep, Babe? You in pain?"

Castle looked up at her. "Oh, no. Well a little, but not enough to keep me up. I just wanted to put the notes together on this case. The family, the murders, and getting on to it all because of a worm like Meech. It was just all too delicious to sleep on. I think I may make this into a separate novel entirely, or maybe a collection of stories, each highlighting a killer from the Pertwee clan, starting with Chauncy. I still can't get over that name, it's almost too good to change when I fictionalize the stories. Actually, it fits him. The Urban Dictionary has it as someone who puts their own good above the good of the group - it's from a movie. It just sounds so wimpy for a killer. No wonder he went by Erik the Red. It's going to be hard to come up with something as good. Maybe Percy, like the Scarlet Pimpernel. Mm, that was red too. I'll have to think about it. But this will give me something extra to work with while you're off the street and I won't have as much badass Beckett stuff to use for Nikki Heat."

"I thought you were going to revive Derrick Storm somehow and use him for that."

"No reason I can't do both. Patterson's been teasing me that I only put out a book a year. It would help to shut him up. Anyway, if I can get ahead, it will give me more time to play tourist with you after the wedding and be a doting father after M.G. is born."

"Okay Castle, but don't stay up all night. Odo's bucket isn't the only lonely place in the universe, and you may get your denouement tomorrow."

Castle reached up to catch her hand. "Wouldn't want to miss that, or leave you lonely. I'll pour myself back into bed as soon as I can."

At one A.M., only slightly wary of the putting painful pressure on his chest, Castle wrapped himself around Kate to dream of excitement the next day would bring.


	69. Chapter 69

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 69

Barry O'Loughlin sat at the metal table in interrogation flanked on one side by his lawyer, Milton Price and on the other by his guardian Mildred Montrose. Castle, Beckett, and Toni Gonzalez sat facing him with files, pictures, and Barry's family album piled in front of them.

"Ms. Montrose, Mr. O'Loughlin, Mr. Price, this is the situation," Beckett began. "The knife that has been identified as having stabbed Mr. Castle," Beckett inclined her head toward her fiancé, "was found in Mr. O'Loughlin's apartment. Medical reports show that knife was clearly aimed at Mr. Castle's heart. There is no question that had it not been for Mr. Castle's use of pepper spray, he would have been killed. Mr. O' Loughlin had burns from the pepper spray Mr. Castle used to fight him off. Mr. Castle's blood was found on Mr. O'Loughlin's shoes. There is no doubt, reasonable or otherwise, that Mr. O'Loughlin committed the crime. Now whether he is locked up in prison or a psychiatric facility is for a judge to decide, but he will be convicted. However, this," Beckett pointed to the album, "indicates that Mr. O'Loughlin holds knowledge that may yield solutions to a number of crimes, including the murder of Logan Meech."

Toni Gonzalez picked up from Beckett. "The Attorney General's office holds a strong interest not only in Logan Meech's murder, but in ending a series of killings that have been going on for decades, starting with the murder of Dean Murphy. Mr. O'Loughlin, there is ample evidence that you know not only who committed these murders but who was behind them. If you give us that information, we are willing to help you. With Mr. Castle's assent, we can reduce the charge against you from attempted murder, which would put you away for at least 15 years, to assault which carries a minimum of one year. This is a very good deal and in Mr. Castle's place I'm sure I wouldn't be as accommodating." Toni rose from her seat. "We will leave you and Ms. Montrose to discuss this with Mr. Price. This deal has a limited shelf life. You have fifteen minutes." Toni walked out of the room followed by Beckett and Castle.

Chica, that was fine!" Esposito greeted Toni from his post in observation.

Beckett and Castle looked at each other and made tracks for the break room to give Esposito space to maneuver. "You think O'Loughlin will accept?" Castle asked, as they settled at a high table with coffee and juice.

"It's not really up to him, Castle. The court decided he was temporarily incapable of making rational decisions and appointed Mildred Montrose to look out for his best interests in these negotiations. She may listen to what he wants to do, but in the end she'll have no choice. A year or so versus fifteen or more is a no brainer. She'd have to agree to it. But how do you feel about it, Babe? That man tried to kill you and he came pretty close. If they take the deal, he's getting a slap on the wrist. Can you live with that?"

"I think taking down a band of murderers and the royalties from the book sales might ease the pain," Castle replied, "along with loving care from my fiancé. But I can't see this guy surviving long without his family anyway. Karma will catch up with him. When it does, I might even get another story out of it."

Kate reached for his hand. "You always see the silver lining, don't you?"

"How could I not, when it's sitting right in front of me?" Castle responded.

* * *

The round up of the Pertwee Clan was carefully coordinated. Cell phone jammers were set up to prevent warning calls from going out. Doors all over the city were knocked on or knocked in by squads of police, as simultaneously as was humanly possible. Kate was grudgingly desk bound but Castle sat in the back of Ryan and Esposito's unit. He had a sense of déja vu as Kate joined him on Facetime for the arrest of Piper Murphy. "Ryan and Esposito are going in now, Kate," he reported. "They have L.T. and Harrison with them, although I don't - oh they're carrying her out. Looks like they had to tase her. And Ryan has an extra pistol. I think it's a Sig like I have Nikki use. This just keeps getting better. The old lady must have tried to pull it on them. She's as crazy as her cousin. O'Loughlin did have her in his album for a couple of killings herself, although he wasn't sure exactly whom she killed. We may get some ballistics matches out of this. Montgomery is going to be ecstatic. This operation could fill the closure quota for the precinct for a year. I think I'll have a duplicate of O'Loughlin's knife made and give it to him as a trophy for the wall of his office."

"Castle, you could put it on the wall of your own office. This operation couldn't have happened without you. You know, news just came in that Chauncy was tracked down in Florida. There are a couple of open cases down there that fit his M.O.. Florida still has a death penalty. He may beg for extradition to New York."

"I think Espo's making plans about where to take Toni to celebrate," Castle reported. "He was asking me about fine dining establishments. She may end up as his plus one for our wedding."

"Yeah, I wouldn't count on it, Castle. He wants to give her ideas, but probably not that kind. But I guess we'll find out."

* * *

Castle pulled out a chair for Kate at Q3. "I didn't think Esposito should be the only one celebrating. I had to beg, but Maddie moved around a bunch of reservations to get us in tonight."

"That was sweet, especially since she's not going to make any money from us on expensive wine - unless you want some," Kate offered. "I don't mind."

"The only intoxication I need is my bride to be," Castle responded.

Kate rolled her eyes. "Castle, if you put a line like that in one of your books, the reviewers would flay you, and I don't mean Chef Bobby Flay."

"Well it isn't in one of my books Kate, it's for very private consumption." Castle wiggled one eyebrow. "And speaking of privates..."

"Castle, you just got your stitches out. Although," Kate mused, inserting the tip of her finger between her lips. "I suppose we could get creative."

"Creative is my middle name," Castle declared, "along with Edgar and Alexander." He eyed Kate continuing to suck enticingly on her finger and took a gulp of his ice water. "Um, you know, I'm sure Maddie could really use this table with the crowd out there. Maybe we should just order dinner to go."

Kate touched her still moist finger to his heavily breathing mouth. "Castle, I think that is a wonderful idea."


	70. Chapter 70

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 70

A/N There is a time jump here into May.

The grass at the Van Amstel Estate was still wet from earlier showers but the sun was bright in the skies and the remaining wispy clouds nonthreatening. Kate stood at the mirror in the small dressing room smoothing the skirt of her wedding gown for the hundredth time. "Kate, you look beautiful," Lanie soothed. "It doesn't matter if the baby makes your skirt look a little fuller. Wedding gowns are supposed to be full. And you glow girl! Besides, all your friends are over the moon that you and the baby are doing so well, and if any of Castle's author crowd tries to get snarky, I will personally smack them."

In full dress blues, Ryan knocked on the door with a white gloved hand. "There's no press. A couple of enterprising freelancers tried to sneak in, but they met up with Tanu and his cousins. I think those paparazzi may need a change of underwear. Almost everyone is here. Castle is still waiting for Patterson's helicopter. He's bringing Steven King and Wes Craven. The sax player is doing a little jazz for the guests while they wait."

"I hear a helicopter coming in now. See, everything is going to be fine," Lanie asserted. "Now as your maid of honor, I'm going to go check on your bridesmaids. I want to make sure Maddie is out of her catering clothes and into her gown. I think she said she was going to use the service pantry to change. She didn't want to get too far away from the kitchen."

"You look gorgeous, Beckett," Ryan said before he left as Martha arrived.

Martha's entrance was much more subdued than her usual sweep through a doorway. "Katherine, since your mother has to observe from the highest balcony, I thought I might serve as her understudy. And if you need something blue, I have these." Martha flipped open a vintage jewelry box.

Kate stared at a pair of delicate sapphire earrings. "Oh Martha, those are stunning!"

"These earrings have always been worn by the Rodgers women, My mother and her mother before her. But they are for women of substance and courage. "I never offered them to Meredith or to Gina. But you have done so much for Richard. You've been by his side through the worst of circumstances."

"And he's been by mine," Kate responded. "The truth is, Martha, without him I'd have been dead several times over."

"The truth is, Katherine," Martha offered, "that you've made him happier than I've ever seen him. And for that I am profoundly grateful. So, wear the earrings in good health for you and the baby."

Kate pulled Martha into an embrace. "Thank you Martha."

Lanie bustled back in. "Maddie and your cousin Sophia are ready. Your Dad looks like he's about to faint. Alexis is doing the last minute organizing. I admit I was skeptical when Castle chose her as his best man, but she's doing a great job. Ryan's new girlfriend Jenny is helping her out. She's a doll."

The whup of helicopter blades sounded from the outside. "Patterson and company have landed," Kate noted.

"They are the last of the guests." Lanie consulted the antique clock on the wall. "If that thing's accurate, we should actually be starting on time."

Castle nervously waited at the front of the gathering, Alexis, Ryan, and Esposito beside him. Alexis wore a simply tailored but elegant dress in blue to match the cop's uniforms. The saxophone player began the opening notes of _Nothing's Gonna Change My Love For You_ , and Maddie started down the fabric covered aisle between white folding chairs set up on a well manicured lawn. Sophia was a few steps behind her. They both wore simple high necked blue sheaths. Lanie followed. Assuring attention would stay directed at the bride, her voluptuous assets were attractively camouflaged by the modest cut of her gown. They all carried slender bouquets of irises, interspersed with silver painted star-shaped leaves. Kate followed on Jim Beckett's arm. Before starting her journey, she had been silently reminding herself not to chew off her lipstick and praying she wouldn't trip on the yards of fabric flowing around her. When she saw Castle, all other thoughts flew from her head. It was really going to happen. They were going to be married. Her feet moved of their own accord until she released her hold on her father and joined her groom.

Far from his familiar affable presence at the poker table, Judge Markaway looked solemn and distinguished in his robes as he began the simple ceremony. "When Richard Castle and Katherine Beckett first began working together, there was a pool at the courthouse, and I understand also at the morgue and the Twelfth Precinct, as to when they would finally realize they were in love with each other. We all lost, and for a while it seemed that it would never happen. Their journey was long and often dangerous, but it brought them together and to this moment. Today we are here to celebrate with them as they declare that love to the world. They have written their own vows, and they will share those now. Rick, you may begin."

Alexis handed Castle a slim white gold band which he slipped on Kate's finger. "Kate, I've never known anyone like you. From the moment we met, you were never out of my thoughts. You are a muse, a partner, a friend, and the love of my life. You have been by my my side through trials I could never have imagined but you never wavered. So now I promise to be as unwavering for you. I will love you, cherish you, and support you, whatever the rest of our lives may bring, always."

Kate handed her own bouquet to Lanie, who in turn extended Castle's wedding band to the bride. Kate slid the ring on his finger. "Rick, I never thought I could love anyone as deeply as I love you. When I was submerged in the darkness of grief, you pulled me into the light. You pushed your way into my life, even when I couldn't admit, even to myself, that I wanted you there. You brought back joy and hope I'd believed I'd lost forever. I couldn't have a better partner or friend. I promise to be your partner in all things, in joy, or sadness, in love, and in life, always."

Markaway gazed at the couple who now stood, hands firmly clasped. "There is nothing to say after that except by the power vested in me by the State of New York, I now pronounce you husband and wife. "You may... I see you have that part."

The crowd laughed and applauded as Kate and Castle kissed. When they finally pulled themselves apart, Castle extended his arm to lead Kate to the carriage house. The saxophone played _I_ _t's_ _A_ _W_ _onderful_ _W_ _orld_ while the wedding party and guests followed.

The guests enjoyed Maddie's exquisite and seamlessly served food. Alexis, Esposito, and Ryan all offered toasts with both alcoholic and none alcoholic beverages. Finally Castle and Kate took the floor for the first dance, to an instrumental of _Always_ , played by a jazz ensemble. As Castle held Kate against him, he could fell flutters of motion even through the layers of her dress. "Kate, I think M.G. wants to cut in."

Kate nestled her head into Castle's shoulder. "Castle, he can do that in a few months. This dance is all ours."


	71. Chapter 71

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 71

A/N I am upping the rating to an M for this chapter. It is their honeymoon. The words are not explicit, but...

Kate stretched contentedly in a bed even more luxurious than the one she and Castle shared at the loft. "Castle, this place is fabulous."

Castle bent over her for the first kiss of the morning. "Not as fabulous as you are. Kate, we've had a lot of amazing nights - and mornings - and afternoons - but last night was beyond description even by my prodigious vocabulary."

"I'm having the same problem," Kate admitted. "I don't know how to describe it, but after all the time we've been together, I was surprised and blown away. I don't know what it was, but it was incredible."

"What it was, is knowing that despite everything the universe has thrown at us, we've managed to make it together. That we will be together for the rest of our lives no matter what else we have to face." Castle propped himself up on one elbow. "But you know what else was incredible? Dr. Gale catching the bouquet, and Morris looking happy about it. We may be attending their wedding soon."

Kate giggled. "It looked like Toni Gonzales might have been thinking about going for it too, although at the last minute she stayed cool - much to Espo's relief. I think he likes scaling that mountain, but he doesn't want to bring it home to Mama."

"Speaking of Mama, M.G. was busy last light. A couple of times I thought he was trying to kick me away. Strong legs. I think he must take after you."

"Staying up all night is more like you Castle." Castle's eyebrows rose. "I didn't mean that, I meant staying up all night writing and well maybe that too. You do have remarkable stamina for a man approaching middle age."

"What!" Castle exclaimed. "I am in the very prime of my life and my manhood is undiminished."

Kate ran a fingertip over the tenting of the satin duvet. "Yes I can see that. Something on your mind, Castle?"

"You, just you," Castle murmured. Kicking the covers away and bringing his lips to hers, he grasped her shoulders, rolling her on top of him. Breasts, now ripened by pregnancy, strained for his touch. They found first his hands, then his mouth, as his fingers reached her most intimate needs.

Heat spread through her at his touch and she opened to him. The words were husky in her throat. "There, more, harder! Oh, you know. Yes, you know, oh you know, Babe. Like that!" She covered his hand with here own. "Oh, right there!" Her head fell back, her hair a silken curtain. She gasped as her body arched of its own accord. "Rick, I need you - now Babe, now!"

They were together, moving in desperate rhythm. Their lips pressed hard against each other, their tongues in a twisting dance, as his thumb caressed the now hardened nub that was seat of her desire. She could feel the change, the arousal like an internal switch opening the floodgates of sensation. She rode faster, invisible muscles contracting tightly around him, dragging him to the brink with her. He broke his kiss. "Kate I'm..."

Her breath rose, almost in sobs. "Almost there. Rick, please!" Air screamed from her lungs as the force of their release overcame them both.

Kate rolled away, catching her breath. After a moment she began to laugh.

Castle was baffled. "I would call what just happened a lot of things. Earth shattering and world changing come to mind, but not funny. What are you laughing about?"

"It shouldn't be funny," Kate replied, swiping at the tears leaking from her eyes. "it's just that we're having M.G. because we …."

"Yeah, unless there's a star rising in the East somewhere. I think we've both understood that particular aspect of biology for a long time. What?" Castle prompted.

"Now he's getting into the act. I can't snuggle down into your chest anymore after we - because he's in the way. And now he's wide awake and boogieing. It's strange, that's all. Like we're honeymooning with a chaperon or something."

Castle put a large hand over the slowly stretching skin of her abdomen. "He is busy in there. But I've never heard of a chaperon that would have let us do what we just did. He's just along for the ride. Ooh, see what I did there?"

Kate rolled her lips in a raspberry. "Castle."

"Kate, this time is ours, yours and mine. M.G. is part of both of us that's never going to change. But now, finally, we seem to be getting to the easy part. You're not sick and neither is M.G. I'm not craving blood and my wound is healed. We don't have to worry about Alexis or my mother wandering in. We can go out and have fun or stay in and have even more fun. We don't need a sitter, we don't have to worry about what we say or watch or play. If we're up in the middle of the night it's because we want to be. Let's enjoy every second of this time." He pulled himself up. "So, we have tickets for La Cage Aux Folles tonight, what do you want to do today?" He wiggled on brow. "Or, what else do you want to do today?"

"I think M.G. and I are both starved. Food! Lots of food!"

"They do an incredible brunch here, even if you do have to skip the mimosas. Or we could order room service," Castle suggested. "We wouldn't have to get dressed."

"Castle, are you kidding? After the way Lanie, Alexis, and Martha ganged up to make me go clothes shopping for our honeymoon, I have to wear some of my new strategically stretchy outfits. We'd have to get dressed eventually and the idea of grabbing everything I can stuff in my mouth off of a fancy buffet sounds wonderful right now."

* * *

Castle watched with an appreciative smile as Kate loaded her plate with smoked salmon, lobster, strawberries, and custom made crepes. He sipped at his coffee while he waited as a tall hatted chef efficiently produced a fresh and fluffy Belgian waffle.

"Castle, I would have expected you to go for something more exotic," Kate commented as they returned to their table.

"Well they make omelets, but they didn't have chocolate, marshmallows, or graham crackers for s'morelets," Castle complained. "So I took what the chef could manage."

"Castle, I think s'morelets are unique to your kitchen." A "Thank God," echoed silently in her head.

"Our kitchen, Kate," Castle corrected, "but I am ahead of the culinary curve. On the other hand, I thought we could go retro for a while though this morning. We can give M.G. his first boat trip with no chance of seasickness. I could rent a rowboat or if we're lucky, get us a gondola ride, on Central Park Lake. We can snuggle and enjoy the water and the sunshine then find some nice secluded place in the park and snuggle some more. What do you think?"

Juice squirted as Kate bit into a ripe strawberry. "Castle, I think that sounds perfect."


	72. Chapter 72

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 72

A/N Just for the record, whatever other authors may do and I know it varies greatly, I actually try to adhere to the site's ratings guidelines. There are certainly much more explicit things allowed on other sites and if that's what floats your boat, enjoy. In my mind, I write love scenes. Some of the time that involves sex, but it doesn't have to. Sometimes holding and comforting a partner in distress is a much more powerful act of love than any kind of sex. Understanding your mate's needs, whether sexual or finding a lost Kindle, to my mind, is the true bond between lovers.

* * *

"The kids have all the good make out spots," Castle whined after a long walking tour of high points of Central Park. He led Kate away from a dense clump of trees, discouraged.

"The kids don't have a suite at the Four Seasons, Castle," Kate reminded him. "But I think I know a place we haven't tried." Pulling him by the hand, she began to walk north.

"Are you thinking about the Ramble?" Castle asked. "I think everyone knows that one. It's even in the history books as the 'Fruited Plain' because of all the action there."

"Actually I was thinking of a place under the Ramble," Kate told him. "It's kind of hidden and may be a tight fit."

"That sounds both intriguing and promising, but will it work with the baby on board?" Castle worried.

"We'll be fine," Kate assured him. They picked their way through a thick grove to some large rocks in the center. "There," Kate pointed. "there's a cave in there."

Castle surveyed a cluster of boulders surrounding a crevice in the earth doubtfully, but went first, helping Kate work her way downwards. Finally they were in the depths. The quarters were tight but concealed from sight. Kate felt around as her eyes adjusted to the dark. "Castle, I can't believe we're doing this. I haven't been here since I was sixteen. Maddie and I scoped this place out hoping we'd get a chance to use it. We actually both had our eyes on the same guy in our history class. But it turned out he had his eye on the captain of the Chess Team, another guy. So neither of us ever succeeded."

"Oh, teenage angst and disappointment," Castle sighed. He groped for her breast but missed his mark. "You want to make up for lost time?"

Kate eased his hand closer to its target. "Castle, that was a teenage move. Here."

Castle leaned in. "Thanks. I think I've got the lay of the land now." His lips met hers with unerring accuracy. "Better?"

"Perfect."

* * *

Castle stretched on the grass outside the thick trees of the Ramble trying to get the kinks out of his long and recently restricted legs. "I think some things really do work better for teenagers. Omigod! I wonder if Alexis has been in that cave?"

"Castle, I don't think you have to worry about that just yet," Kate soothed. "From what I've observed she and Owen are still at the strictly holding hands stage. Anyway, the Ramble is miles from the loft."

"And the carriages we wanted to ride in are on Central Park South. That's more than two miles from where we are now. Are you up for another walk?"

Kate watched him painfully rolling his shoulders and put a hand to the small of her back. "I think M.G. can use a rest. How about we catch an ugly taxi to the Hansom Cabs?"

Castle got to his feet and extended his hands to help Kate up. "Great minds think alike."

"But Castle," she added, "I want a hot pretzel first - with mustard."

Castle gave a little bow. "Your wish is my command."

* * *

A line of carriages waited between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. Castle picked one with tufted red velvet upholstery and festooned with red flowers and helped Kate climb in. The horse clopped slowly along the pavement flanked by gray bricks and stately trees. Kate nestled under the curve of his arm. "No teenagers here, Castle."

"They probably can't afford it. As the perennial scholarship kid, in my teenage days a ride that cost fifty bucks for twenty minutes would have meant no lunch for weeks, maybe months. Sometimes being able to do something like this without worrying about the money still has sense of unreality to it."

"Going to Stuy is free for anyone who can pass the entrance exam, but I know what you mean. I started working at fifteen, even before I could qualify for working papers, and almost every cent I made went toward buying my Harley. You don't get rich being a cop either, at least not a clean one. Your house in the Hamptons, the five star hotel suite, they're still a little strange."

Castle pulled her closer and kissed her hair. "Good strange, I hope."

"Mostly good strange. I'm not sure about that property you bought on the moon."

"Well when the Earth is a burned out husk, the Castle family will have a place to go. That is if we can figure out food, water, and air."

"And here I thought you were worried about a zombie apocalypse," Kate teased. "I guess if we can work out those pesky details it makes sense."

Kate's eyes began to drift shut with the slow motion of the carriage. By the time the driver returned them to their starting place, her head was heavy on Castle's shoulder. Though the Four Seasons was walking distance for native New Yorkers, Castle hailed another cab and willingly accepted her weight against his side as they returned to their suite. He led her to the bed and pulled off her boots. "If we're going to do a late night at the theater, I think Mama could use a nap."

"She grabbed his hand as he started to walk away. "Only if Papa joins me."

Castle toed off his shoes and contentedly laid down beside his wife.

Castle awoke in the late afternoon to the rumbling of Kate's belly as she pushed herself up against the headboard. "Early dinner or snack and late supper?" he inquired sitting up next to her.

"Wherever they have kosher pickles," Kate replied.

"You realize what a cliché that is, right?" Castle asked. "I could never put that in a book. It would only be worse if you wanted ice cream too."

Kate wrinkled her nose. "Ice cream with pickles? Really Castle. That's pretty ridiculous. I want a pastrami sandwich with cole slaw on the side, the thick kind, not with the runny white stuff, and root beer flavored seltzer."

Castle's eyes crinkled in amusement. "I'm sure the concierge can find us the nearest good deli. I'd suggest Katz's, but I'm not sure I want a ravenous pregnant woman on my hands for the time it would take us to get down there. By the way, is that the menu for a snack or a meal?"

"Castle can we figure that out after the show is over? Just call the concierge."

"Whatever you want," Castle replied, knowing that before the baby arrived he would be repeating his response many times.


	73. Chapter 73

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 73

Kate's eyes eased open as she stretched against the smooth sheets. The heavy hotel drapes were still drawn, keeping the light in the room dim, but Castle was up and dressed and working at his laptop. "What time is it?" Kate asked.

Castle consulted the digits at the bottom of his screen. "Ten thirty. You looked so peaceful, I didn't have the heart to wake you."

Kate propped herself against the panoply of extra pillows housekeeping had provided. "The extra time was nice. Great, actually. I can't remember the last time I slept this late. What have you been up to?"

"Our little adventure in the cave gave me an idea for Derrick Storm. I'm just getting it down. I've already had a shower, lonely as it was. You could catch yours while I finish."

"It's a good idea," Kate agreed. "Can you order breakfast while I get wet and wrinkly? I want French Toast with strawberry jelly and a side of tomatoes."

Castle didn't dare crack a smile. "Okay."

As Kate used the opulent facilities, Castle dutifully picked up the house phone. He put in her request and ordered coffee and croissants for himself. Returning to his laptop while he waited, he eagerly revealed Storm's betrayer, then closed the lid and pulled the hotel's voluminous directory of local attractions from the desk drawer. He had originally planned sorties into several museums for the day, but having noticed how extensive walking appeared to tire his pregnant wife, he decided a change in plan might be in order. He perused the offerings. One cruise caught his attention. It was hardly luxurious, and covering over a hundred attractions in less than three hours would be giving the sights a lick and a promise at best. But Kate could relax. He noticed that if he booked online and they made it to the pier at forty-second street by noon, they'd be set. If room service was prompt, which the level of his tips should guarantee, and at the rate Kate had inhaled her food the past couple of days, making the boat on time should be no problem. Room service was quick, arriving while Kate was blow drying her hair. Castle signed the bill adding a more than generous gratuity.

* * *

With a cab ride, the swiftness of which was encouraged by the bills Castle waved, Castle and Kate claimed the last two seats on the boat's preferred upper deck. Most of the narration by the guide was New York history Castle could have spouted in his sleep, so when his eyes weren't on an actual monument or institution of note, Castle turned them to his novelist's preoccupation with people watching. He watched fathers with their kids on their shoulders, remembering when he had done the same with Alexis. Castle looked forward to repeat performances with M.G.. He could see other honeymooners, arms around each others' waists counting the minutes until they could once more explore more interesting things than the city. Finally his eyes caught a figure moving from one tourist to another at the railing. The man was leaning forward, ostensibly to get a better view, but furtively inserting his hands where they clearly didn't belong. "Kate," he whispered, "I think we've got a pickpocket on board."

Kate followed his gaze. "You're right Castle. The cruise is almost over. Keep an eye on him and I'll call it in. We can have unis meet us at the dock to arrest him when we debark." Kate pulled her phone from her pocket and moved away from the other passengers while Castle continued to observe. After the boat docked, his quarry had made it near the head of the line of passengers ready to leave. Kate's whisper was covered by the clatter of the tourists preparing to get off the boat. "Castle, the unis are arriving but they're just making it to the pier. We need to hold him and the passengers so they can get their stuff back. Otherwise their vacations could be ruined."

"Do you have your badge and your gun?" Castle inquired, unfortunately pretty sure of her answer.

"Castle," she hissed, "it's our honeymoon and even if I was on duty, I'm supposed to be desk bound."

"Alright, I have plan," Castle told her. Rushing back to the guide, he grabbed the microphone. "May I have your attention please? I am Richard Castle. You may know me as the author of the best selling Derrick Storm and Nikki Heat books. As trained observers of criminal behavior, my wife Detective Beckett and I have spotted some, taking place aboard this very cruise. I would advise you all to check your personal belongings and stop that man from leaving."

Castle pointed to the sticky fingered passenger, who ran for the ramp but was stopped by a group of beefy young men with wide shoulders and military haircuts. "You're not going anywhere buddy."

The uniformed officers rushed up the ramp and Kate introduced herself, giving her badge number. A quick search of the suspect revealed a collection of wallets and cell phones stowed in special pockets in his jacket. The culprit was arrested, cuffed, and transported by officers from one unit while the men from another unit took statements and coped with the stolen articles. Kate and Castle stayed through the process."I'm sorry Kate," Castle apologized. "We do seem to attract trouble. I'd thought we might get the planetarium in this afternoon, get our snuggle in the dark, but that asshole's little crime spree has pretty much killed our chances."

Kate brushed back the hair that had fallen across his forehead in the breeze from the river. "Castle, don't apologize. Can you imagine what those tourists would have gone through if you hadn't spotted that guy? No money, no credit cards, no I.D. to get on a plane, they wouldn't even have been able to call anyone for help. These days everyone has their numbers on their phones. You helped a lot of people today. How could I get mad at you for that? I'm really kinda proud."

The captain of the boat approached them with an envelope. "You two saved us from a P.R. nightmare. Can you imagine the stories of innocent tourists being ripped off on our cruise? This is a voucher for a Premier Harbor Lights Cruise for tonight or any night you can make it. You'll have a private patio and dedicated food and beverage service. It's pretty much the same route, but you'll still enjoy it. It's a very different city at night."

"What do you say Kate?" Castle asked. "Do you want another boat ride tonight? A little more romantic this time? A private snuggle in the city lights instead of under a dome of stars and planets?"

"He had me at dedicated food service," Kate smiled. "We can take the cruise. We'll have to go back to the hotel and change first. It's going to be cold on the river at night. But Castle, before we do that, I need a banana split with strawberry ice cream, chocolate syrup, pineapple topping, whipped cream, and two cherries."

Castle offered her his arm. "I'm sure that can be arranged.


	74. Chapter 74

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 74

"Castle, I want to go to Times Square today," Kate declared.

"To go shopping or just do a touristy gawk at the billboards?" Castle inquired.

"Well both. It's been a while since I've seen it any time but New Years," Kate admitted. "It's sort of adult Disneyland these days. I'd love to look around."

"I have to confess that I haven't been that excited about it since it ceased being a Mecca for porn," Castle confided. "When Giuliani cleaned it up, a fine old sticky newspaper tradition died."

Kate shook her head. "Castle! Too much information."

What did you want to shop for?" Castle wondered. "I don't think they're big on maternity stores and we've been picking up keepsakes for the family from the various museums."

"Castle are you kidding? They have Dale and Thomas Popcorn, the Hershey's store and mm," Kate licked her lips, "M&M's® World."

Castle grinned. "Say no more. Times Square it is."

* * *

"Can't get any closer," the turbaned cabbie informed the couple as they approached their destination. "Looks like the police have everything blocked off ahead."

Kate stared out at the stopped traffic and pulled out her phone. "I'm gonna call dispatch, find out what's going on." She pressed her lips together in a tense line as she listened to the voice on the other end. "We'll just get out here," she told the driver as Castle hastily pulled out his wallet.

"Castle, I didn't want to say anything in the cab," Kate told him as they walked away from the taxi. "The details aren't clear yet, but there may be a terrorist threat in Times Square. One of the vendors saw someone put something in a car and a few minutes later the car started smoking. The area's being evacuated and the BDU is there."

"Shouldn't we get out of here?" Castle asked.

"I should get to the precinct," Kate replied. "I can at least help to coordinate responses to panic calls until we figure out what's happening. No doubt hundreds of tourists have tweeted and posted to Facebook already and it'll be on all the news outlets. People are going to be seeing terrorists behind every tree."

"I'm going with you," Castle stated with determination. "I can answer a phone as well as anyone. We should probably take the subway; traffic will be a mess."

"You're right about that," Kate agreed.

Word appeared to have spread with lightning speed. The subway station was packed with travelers trying to get somewhere else, anywhere else. Castle kept an arm around Kate, staring menacingly at anyone who might get close enough to jostle her or the baby. The air of fear inside the underground tunnels was palpable. All the seats on the train were taken and hands grasping poles bore whitened knuckles. Castle was beginning to have second thoughts about a trip to the Twelfth, but knew that dissuading Kate would be impossible.

* * *

The atmosphere at the precinct was tense, with more than enough panicked citizens to sooth. Kate and Castle joined a group of civilian employees and volunteers at a hastily set up phone bank while scenes of Times Square played silently on a screen above them. Captain Montgomery came through announcing that while there had been a bomb, the triggering mechanism had failed. The BDU had disassembled it with no injuries and the emergency was officially over. The tide of calls continued, as it took time for the message to filter through to the populace. A number of calls came in reporting suspicious cars and lurkers, all of whom had to be checked out. Castle made sure Kate had water, but there was no chance for anything else. It was late evening by the time things calmed down enough for Kate to stretch in her chair, realizing how tired and hungry she was.

"Hey," Castle said, "I thought I'd call Gino's and have pizza brought in for the whole crew. Everyone's been working their asses off. Then after, maybe we can go back to the hotel and you can take advantage of my magic fingers."

"Castle I think we could both use some magic fingers about now but mass quantities of pizza sound like heaven," Kate agreed.

"Consume mass quantities," Castle repeated in an imitation of a Conehead and pulled out his cell phone.

* * *

Kate and Castle returned to the hotel with stiff shoulders and knotted necks. Kate regretfully regarded the huge Jacuzzi standing idle in the corner of their suite. "You know Castle, I can't use that because being immersed in the heat isn't good for M.G. but there's no reason you can't."

"Kate, it's made for two. Something for one in the Honeymoon Suite just doesn't cut it. But there is a massage setting in the shower. We both fit in there fine and it's not on the forbidden list."

"Sold, Castle."

Like most hotel showers, the temperature of the hot water was regulated to avoid litigation, never rising high enough to risk scalding even the most delicate skin. It was just warm enough to loosen tight muscles, especially with help from willing hands. By the time they emerged from the bath wrapped in soft terri robes, the couple was loose and relaxed. They lay side by side on the bed, fingers loosely entwined.

Slowly Castle's relaxation began to ebb to be replaced by another sensation. He shifted uncomfortably, hoping it would fade, and Kate at least, could get some rest. She squeezed his hand. "Castle, do you want...?"

"You too?" he asked. "I thought you were tired."

Kate rolled toward him. "I've got a second wind."

He rolled to face her. "Then we shouldn't waste it." He pulled at the sash of her robe while she grabbed his. Her flesh was warm and smooth, an invitation to taste, as the simple garment gaped open.

She jerked and gasped at the touch of his lips on the tender skin of her neck. "I knew I was ready. I didn't know I was this ready."

His voice was a windy rasp in his throat. "It's like the tension. You don't realize how strong it is until it's released."

She pushed away the nubby fabric still forming a barrier between them. "Release, I could still use some of that."

Castle cupped her, hot and moist against his palm. "That makes two of us." He pulled her above him, the pressure of her against his groin adding fuel to a fire already well on its way to a blaze. "Do you have any idea how beautiful your breasts are?" he asked, extending his tongue to circle the darkening tip of a velvety globe.

Plunging her hands in his hair, she pulled his head against her. She opened, the emptiness suddenly unbearable as frissons of need shot through her, ignited by the tugging of his mouth and the touch of his hand. Kate stroked him until the hard urgency beneath her fingers announced a desperation matching her own. She took him in, relieved yet needier still. They moved in ancient concert as she drew upwards. Arching, he rose to fill her even more deeply. "Castle," she pleaded, breathlessly.

The tips of his fingers joined the dance, teasing the flesh beneath them. Nerve endings fired in an ever expanding storm. Kate's eyes were squeezed shut and explosions of light and color danced behind her lids. One final thrust and the colors fragmented to a shower of sparks. A scream forced its way from her throat as the tremors roared through her body. Castle's answering response erupted within her most intimate depths. As the shock wave faded, restful sleep finally swaddled them both.

A/N I played with time a little bit here. There was an unsuccessful terrorist car bomb in Times Square on May 1, 2010. I just used it for the story.


	75. Chapter 75

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 75

Castle rolled over and gazed adoringly at his bed-mussed bride. "What do you want to do on our last day?"

A bright beam from a crack between the drapes skipped across the bedclothes. Kate dipped her fingers into the sunlight. "It looks like it's going to be a beautiful day. How about the zoo, Bronx, not Central Park?"

"Kate, that place is huge. Sure you want to be on your feet that much?"

"Castle we can mix it up. We can walk around and do the monorail. I think the 4-D theater has a thing about dinosaurs."

Castle's face lit up. "Oh yeah. I've been wanting to have an excuse to see that, but Alexis is a bit past that stage for her school field trips."

Kate lifted a hand to the joyous creases in his face. "Well now you have one. We can make plans for what to show M.G. when he's old enough."

"You are surpassing even my excellent achievements in rationalization," Castle teased. "Believe me, that's saying something."

"I know it is, Castle, but the truth is, I want to see the elephants, especially since they're running free, not in cages."

Castle pictured the line of china elephants always marching across Kate's desk. "Of course you do."

Castle brought up a map of the zoo on his laptop. "We can pick up the "2" train at Columbus Circle and it will take us a couple of blocks from the Asia Gate. If we get a couple of Total Experience tickets we can just do whatever, whenever we want. They open at ten but we have all day. We can make sure you and M.G. are fed before we go. Does he have a special yen this morning?"

Kate's eyes shone with mischief as she drew patterns on the vee of skin on Castle's chest peaking through the opening of his robe. "Breakfast burritos? I think we're both feeling a little spicy."

Castle spanned her hips with his hands. "Would never argue with that. I read a great review of a food truck that makes those, parks not far from here. We could stop there to spice up your day and then hop on the subway."

"Sounds like a plan, Castle."

A light sweat broke out on Castle's forehead as he made his way through one of the chorizo stuffed tortillas his wife was consuming eagerly. He ate slowly. If he even tried to match Kate at this point, he'd have a bump without benefit of baby, not to mention a hell of a case of heartburn. If in-utero experience had anything to do with it, M.G. would grow up with very eclectic tastes.

* * *

The train ride to the zoo was long, stretching through much of both Manhattan and the Bronx, but the couple took their trip well past rush hour. There was no crowd on the platform and plenty of seats in the car. Castle had obtained a large zoo map from the concierge and he leaned over it with Kate as the subway bumped along its tracks. They decided to proceed by continent and after trekking through the Asian Plaza, the Himalayan Highlands and Tiger Mountain, Kate settled against Castle in their seats on the Wild Asia Monorail. The guide pointed out the Mongolian horses who had been brought back from extinction, explaining that they were the only species of horses left in the world that had never been domesticated. Castle couldn't help noting the irony that the only truly wild horses existed only in captivity. He photographed huge gower cows capable of taking down a Siberian tiger and then Yuri the tiger himself who investigated the cows, shielded by a very sturdy fence. Kate was taken with Patty and Maxine, longtime Indian elephant companions, a real life reflection of the companionship the residents of her desk had given both her mother and herself.

Castle pointed at Callie the Rhino wallowing in the mud to protect her tender skin from sun damage. "Reminds me of Mother's trips to all the spas she loves so dearly."

"Castle," Kate rebuked him laughingly, "if Martha ever heard you say that something that wrinkled reminded you of her, I'd be scraping pieces of you off the floor."

"No," Castle disagreed, "Mother is more larcenous than violent. She would just charge every animal print in the city to my credit card. You would scrape me off the ceiling when I saw the bill."

The ride neared its end while the guide extolled the other exhibits of the zoo and explained their conservation programs. A mother tried vainly to quiet a bored baby who had begun to howl. Castle gently caressed Kate's belly, detecting a kick from M.G. "Enjoy the quietude. In a few months that will be us."

Kate snorted. "Castle, when have our lives ever been quiet? Compared to the interruptions we get from Ryan and Esposito, a baby crying could be restful."

Castle remembered his nights walking floors trying to comfort a colicky or teething Alexis. Not counting fencing practice or laser tag, at least Alexis never pulled a gun or a knife on him. In the world he'd been inhabiting with Kate, that was a measure of quietude. But he had his doubts that Kate fully grasped what was about to come. He didn't respond.

Castle sat with Kate on a bench near the grizzly bears as she downed the Hershey's shake he'd bought her at the Cool Zone. "Castle, you are uncharacteristically silent. Something wrong?"

"I was just thinking, Kate, we've had so much to worry about with the health of the baby, murderers, the wedding, and even the latest terrorist threat, we haven't taken much time to talk about what we're actually going to do after M.G. makes his debut in the outside world. Montgomery said you'd get eight weeks of maternity leave, when we can take care of him together. But then what? You can't be a part time cop. If we're working together, we can't have M.G. at the precinct, at least not for more than a visit. Am I going to be Mr. Mom while you're out making the world safe? I do have some experience. Somehow Alexis managed to survive having me as her primary caretaker."

"Castle, you're a great dad," Kate interrupted. "That's one of the things that attracted me to you."

"Thank you, but Kate, when I was raising Alexis, I was just a writer. No one ever shot at me. Even then it was a juggling act with tours and book signings and meetings with my publisher. I kept sitters to a minimum because of my experiences with some of the drunken maniacs my mother hired to watch me when I was a kid. I'm sure Alexis will want to help and Mother will probably pitch in as well, but they have lives of their own. I can afford to hire the best. You know that. But I still feel a child should be raised by parents not nannies. How much are you going to be able to do? How much do you want to do? There's one thing that's certain. Our lives are going to change a lot and we only have a few months to work out the details."

Kate chewed on her lip. "Castle, I grew up with two working parents, but I never felt that I was being raised by anyone except my mother and father. I never felt rejected or unloved in the least. What I do, what I think, almost all of it traces back to one or both of them. Somehow they managed to work things out and so will we. But there's one thing of which I'm absolutely sure. You are not going to be raising our child by yourself. When the time comes, however we have to do it, I'll be there."


	76. Chapter 76

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 76

A/N Time jump of about three months.

Beckett squirmed in her chair, unsuccessfully attempting the goal that had eluded her for a couple of weeks: getting comfortable. It was worse today. Her back had been hurting all morning. She knew Castle, who was off in the break room trying to get some writing done, would willingly massage it for her, but he had been so jumpy the past few days she didn't want to tell him she was in pain. She tried to concentrate on her paperwork, but there wasn't much for her to do right now. She was waiting for some reports the desk sergeant had said he'd send up. She heard the clomp of sensible shoes behind her.

Mrs. McNulty, a cheerful white haired volunteer who worked downstairs, was approaching Beckett's desk with a file folder. Beckett extended a hand to take it and winced as a fresh wave of discomfort hit. "Are you all right dear?" McNulty asked.

"It's just my back. I can't get comfortable in this chair anymore," Beckett confided.

McNulty's eyes clouded with concern. "Your back? How far along are you Detective?"

"About thirty-nine weeks, I think," Beckett replied. "The baby's growth was a little strange so we never pegged it exactly. Why?"

"I have five sons and I had back labor with three of them. I wouldn't be surprised if that's what's happening to you."

"I don't think so. It's not that bad," Beckett protested.

"Maybe not yet," McNulty cautioned. "Is that handsome husband of yours around here somewhere? Maybe with his fancy coffee machine?"

"Yeah, but I don't want..." Beckett responded, but McNulty was already striding determinedly away.

Castle arrived at a run with McNulty working to catch up. "We're going to the hospital Kate."

"Castle," Kate protested. "I'm fine, really."

"Well I'm not," Castle declared, "So indulge me. If it's a false alarm it's on my head, but we're going."

"Fine!" Kate retorted, struggling to rise from her chair.

Castle reached down to pick her up in his arms and Montgomery popped out of his office. "Is it time?"

Castle and Beckett answered with a simultaneous "yes" and "no."

"Well get your wife out of here, Castle," Montgomery ordered, "and keep me informed."

McNulty walked ahead of Castle and his eye-rolling burden, to call the elevator.

* * *

Dr. Gale pulled off her glove. "Kate, you're three centimeters dilated. You have a long way to go, but there's no doubt you're in labor. You probably have been all day." She turned to Castle. "It's a good thing you brought her in. Everything looks fine," she announced, turning back to Kate, "but we'll be keeping you and the baby on monitors. You're going have to stay put for that anyway, so we could set you up for an epidural now or do it later. Keep in mind that once we do it, it may take twenty minutes to kick in."

"I'm fine," Kate asserted. "We practiced for this. I can handle it."

Gale shrugged her shoulders with a knowing look. "Alright. I'll be in to check on you. I have other patients on this floor. You just hit your call button if you change your mind."

Despite the smile threatening to creep over his lips, Castle shook his head. "Always have to be the badass don't you Kate? You know, I was watching a morning talk show once when Meredith was pregnant. The host had some pregnant actress on and she was proudly announcing that she'd been studying the Bradley Method so giving birth wouldn't hurt. Well it was her first child, but the host had coached his wife through three. He just looked at her and said, 'Boy are you going to be surprised!' He was right, Kate. I've been through this with Meredith and despite her flighty shopaholic ways, she's a pretty strong woman, but she needed help Kate. I know you have the breathing down pat and you've practiced sleeping between contractions, but the real thing is different. It may be contrary to your doggedly independent nature, but there's no shame in making it easier on yourself - or on me. I hate the thought of seeing you in pain."

"Okay, so now the truth comes out Castle," Kate teased. "You want them to stick a needle in my back so you won't have to suffer."

"You caught me," Castle agreed. "When it comes to you, I'm a cowardly wimp."

Kate flashed back to their time in Romania when she watched Castle thrashing in the hotel bed, battered by fever and chills, and there was nothing she could do but hold his hand. She had been so furious at Dr. Morris for letting her lover suffer and even more furious at her own feelings of helplessness. She reached out a hand now to her husband. "Okay Castle, for your sake, if it gets bad I'll ask for the nice drugs."

Castle let out the breath he'd trapped in his chest. "Thank you."

* * *

Castle watched anxiously as Dr. Gale examined the newly born M.G.. "How is he?"

"I paged a pediatrician to check him out but he looks fine," Gale replied, not turning away from the baby. "Apgar nine. Ten fingers. Ten toes. You're both tall so it's no surprise, but he's big. Twenty-one inches and nine pounds." M.G. gave out with a lusty protest at being thrust from the comfort of his mother's womb. "And loud," Gale added. "I doubt that we'll have concerns about lung function."

The nurse finished cleaning the baby, wrapped him in a blanket and looked questioningly at Dr. Gale, who nodded. The nurse brought him to Kate and put him in her arms. "He has red hair!" Castle exclaimed, "like Alexis."

Kate stroked her finger over the orange fuzz. "Like your mother and my Nona. She had white hair by the time I knew her, but I've seen pictures. My father's always said that's where my temper came from - and my mother's determination."

* * *

Castle gently cradled his son in his large arms as Ryan and Esposito crowded into Kate's room to join Alexis and Martha who were already cooing over M.G.. Roy Montgomery followed, holding a bag. "How are you doing Castle?" Kate looked at him questioningly. Montgomery smiled. "I know you're all right, Kate. It's the fathers who fall apart. I did when all three of mine were born."

"We are, all three of us, just fine Captain," Castle assured him. "What's in the bag?"

Montgomery withdrew a tiny blue blanket. "The bullpen chipped in to have this made up a while ago, but we figured it would be bad luck to give it to you before the baby was born." He held it up so they could see the N.Y.P.D. badge emblazoned on the fleece. "Honorary member of the N.Y.P.D. Auxiliary."

"My son gets a badge and I don't? Captain that's just not fair," Castle pouted.

"Castle, we don't expect your son to be nearly the pain in the ass you are," Montgomery returned.

A tiny hand reached out from beneath his swaddling to tightly grasp his father's finger. "I'd know that grip anywhere," Castle declared. "Don't look now, Captain, but the Twelfth Precinct has another badass on its hands and he'll be carrying the proud name of Castle."


	77. Chapter 77

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 77

Castle strapped M.G. into his high end safety seat for the trip up to Bellville. "Are you sure you're up to this?" he asked Kate for the third time that morning.

Kate's lips pursed in annoyance. "Castle I'm just fine and Dr. Gale and Dr. Morris should be on their way roughly the same time we are. I'm know we're getting a late start. I really did have to take that call from Captain Montgomery. But we'll probably still be able to meet up with them for lunch and we're staying at the same hotel. In the unlikely event that anything should come up, M.G. and I will be in good hands."

Castle slid behind the wheel of the Mercedes. "What was on Montgomery's mind? He isn't trying to talk you into cutting your maternity leave short is he?"

"No. He wouldn't do that. Even if he tried, Evelyn would hang him up by the family jewels. She just loves M.G.. He told me that the lieutenant in robbery is retiring and the precinct in going to be combining some of the duties of robbery and homicide into a special task force. He wants me to take the lieutenant's exam so I can head it up. I wouldn't have to be in the field unless I wanted to be. It would be regular hours, more or less. I might even be able to have M.G. in my office for part of the day. That position would really help us work out a lot of things."

"So I take it you've decided to take the exam?" Castle inquired.

"I think so. Application is online. I thought I could do it from the hotel. We both have our laptops."

"You'll pass it with flying colors," M.G. made baby noises from the back seat as if to agree. "I think you have another booster," Castle quipped. "He may be assuming his position with the N.Y.P.D. sooner than we thought."

A couple of hours into the drive, M.G. made his displeasure loudly known and Castle pulled over at a sheltered overlook so Kate could nurse. He unloaded a folding rocking chair from the baby paraphernalia filled trunk and delivered M.G. from the bondage of his restraining straps. Kate settled into the comfortable seat and Castle handed her the baby, covering them both with a Doctor Who receiving blanket. "Castle you're going to have this child thoroughly immersed in sci fi before he even learns to walk."

"That's all right," Castle responded. "He can do his first cons in a stroller. There's one shaped like a Dalek I was looking at online. It's really cool."

"So the first word out of his mouth will be 'exterminate?'" Kate asked.

Castle nodded thoughtfully. "Point taken. We should probably go with one of the ones shaped like a Tardis. Then he can travel anywhere, anytime."

Kate laughed, a greedily sucking M.G. clinging tightly through the motion of her chest. "Castle, you're incorrigible."

Castle leaned down to kiss her forehead. "No, I'm encouragable." He retrieved his cell phone from the car. "I'm going to call Morris and see where he and Dr. Gale are. There's a family friendly restaurant a couple of hours ahead of us where we can rendezvous if the timing works out. Oh wait. There's another car pulling in. I think that's them."

Morris exited his Prius and walked around to open the door for Gale. They strolled hand in hand to join the Castles. "How often does he nurse?" Gale asked, quickly perceiving what was taking place under the fleece covering.

"He's pretty hungry, Dr. Gale," Kate confided. "He goes at it almost every three hours. The pediatrician says he's growing well, about seventy-fifth percentile."

"I think you can call me Olivia, Kate," Gale responded. "You're more a friend than a patient now. Are you getting any sleep?"

"Actually it's not too bad," Kate replied. "We have M.G. in a bassinet in the room with us and when he starts crying, Castle gets up and brings him to me and I sort of half doze while he's nursing. He falls asleep with me and Castle puts him back down. And Castle watches him so I can nap too. I get tired, but no more than I used to when I was working all hours on a case."

"How about you, Mr. Castle?" Olivia asked.

"Rick," he corrected. "Writer, used to being up at night. As long as I don't use the same word five times in a sentence, I know I'm doing okay." He reached down to lay a hand on Kate's shoulder. "We're partners. We make it work. Which brings me to..." Castle coughed and shuffled his feet against the gravel.

"How long before you can take real advantage of being partners again?" Olivia guessed. Castle reddened and nodded.

"Well we used to say six weeks," Olivia offered. "But research showed there was actually no medical basis for that. Many new parents are so tired during that time that they don't even want to think about it, but it seems like you two are managing pretty well. I'll be giving Kate her exam in another couple of weeks, but I don't expect any problems. There weren't signs of any during the birth. It's more a matter of what feels comfortable for both of you." She smiled knowingly at Castle. "That goes for just about any way you two care to amuse yourselves if you get the chance."

Castle swallowed. "Good to know."

Bellville seemed a different place from the one Castle had been able to see only in darkness. It was still light when he pulled into the hotel parking lot and the sun reflected off the lake. Knowing there was no way he'd be able to bring everything from the car to the room in one trip, he and Kate brought only M.G. and a diaper bag with them to the registration desk. The clerk greeted them obsequiously. "I've been instructed that you, as well as Dr. Morris and Dr. Gale are VIP guests. We've given you the best suites we have. Both have great water views. Your friends have already checked in, so if you'll follow Olga, she'll show you the way. You didn't request a crib. Will you be needing one?"

Kate shook her head and smiled down at a mercifully sleeping M.G.. "We have a portable bassinet he's used to."

"We could use some help with that and all the other luggage," Castle added.

"Of course," the clerk agreed. He motioned at a uniformed young man. "Fane will assist you whenever you're ready."

"Might as well get it all now," Castle decided. He smiled wryly at Fane. "You're going to need a cart, a big cart."

Computers, bassinet, suitcases, rocking chair, blankets, and toys were all stowed in the deluxe suite. M.G. continued to sleep when Kate lowered him into his bassinet. Castle used his cell phone to reach Morris. He wiggled his eyebrows as he ended the short call. "They'll meet us at the hotel restaurant in an hour. He sounded a little breathless. I can guess what they've been up to." He gazed down at his son. "M.G. is happily in dreamland." He wiggled his eyebrows again. "What would you like to do for the next hour?"

Kate raised her own brow. "I need to fill out that lieutenant's exam application but after that, you heard Olivia, Castle. Anything that makes us comfortable."


	78. Chapter 78

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 78

Camilia Albu's house was much as Kate remembered it, comfortable and eclectic. Extra chairs had been brought into the sitting room for the elders who had assembled to absorb what she and Castle would tell them. Stephen Morris and Olivia Gale sat at the head of the group to facilitate the discussion and M.G. lay in his bassinet in the center of the gathering. He wasn't asleep and Kate knew he could begin to protest the situation at any time. She and Castle had agreed that they'd pass him back and forth depending upon who was engaged in answering inquiries. As she regarded the telltale pale faces, she felt uncharacteristically nervous. She hoped that she'd get to do most of the holding while Castle did most of the talking. He was more experienced and considerably more comfortable as a raconteur than she was.

Morris stood up and cleared his throat. "I believe you all know me, as this is my third time sharing with you concerning my research into your exceedingly interesting ailment. You made the request to receive personal accounts from Mr. Castle and his wife Kate Beckett, regarding the details of Mr. Castle's cure and the treatment of their child. They have been gracious enough to join us. Dr. Gale will be assisting with any questions involving in-utero therapy."

"Just get to it, man," one of the elders urged impatiently, reaching for one of the tidbits of raw meat Camilia's butler Anton had brought in on a silver tray.

"Very well," Morris acceded. "Mr. Castle?"

Rick rose from his chair. "First of all, I would very much like to thank Camilia for steering us in the right direction. Had she not passed on the legends of the travails of your people and the lakes in Romania, I would still be tethered to a transfusion clinic. So in many ways, you owe any information we may share to her." Camilia smiled her approval and Castle recounted the trip to Romania and his experience with the effects of the plasmodium infection. Kate was surprised at the lack of drama he lent to the story, communicating the symptoms factually rather than as a tale of suffering.

M.G. began to fuss as Castle gave forth. Kate stepped forward to pick him up but Camilia held out her arms. "Can I hold him?" she asked.

Kate was hesitant to hand her son over to someone who was essentially still a stranger, and a vampire at that, but the look on Camilia's face convinced her. M.G. settled contentedly against the elder's chest as Castle finished his story. The elders had a number of questions, especially concerning the after-effects of the cure. Castle was straightforward with his answers with Morris adding the justification for the complete blood exchange.

The group's attention turned to Kate. Sensing her patient's reticence, Olivia jumped in, explaining the incompatibility of a foreign protein with Kate's blood. Morris added the details of the antibody he'd developed to protect M.G..

"Kate's experience would explain much of the history of our families," Camilia mused.

The baby seemed to stir at the mention of his fetal ordeal and began to whimper. "I'll take him now," Castle told Camilla, nodding encouragingly to his wife.

M.G. quieted again in the familiar cradle of his father's arms but Kate gave as few details as she could of her own experience, necessitating a couple of interjections by Olivia. Finally Camilia rose from her place to take Kate's hand. "This was obviously difficult for you dear and we are very grateful that you were willing to share with us. Now we have much to discuss."

Kate took M.G. once again and the baby immediately began rooting. "I think my son is requesting a service that only my wife can perform," Castle told Camilla. "Is there a place where we might have some privacy?"

"Of course," Camilia responded, easing the awkwardness of what had been a polite dismissal. "Anton will show you."

Anton led them to a guest bedroom where Kate was able to settle in a large wing-backed chair to feed M.G.. "That was difficult for you," Castle confirmed. "I'm a little surprised. You've never had that kind of trouble explaining things to cops at a murder board."

"It was hard," Kate acknowledged. "You know I've never been a fan of sharing my private business. And the baby, what we had to do, that's about as private as it gets. But you didn't seem too comfortable with the situation either. No jokes. No off-the-cuff observations. No movie comparisons. If I hadn't been looking right at you I would have sworn someone else was giving the account. What was going on with you?"

"It was uncomfortable bringing it all back," Castle admitted. "Things are finally going well for us - mostly. I just haven't wanted to think about what it took to get here, even if M.G.'s name is a reminder."

"Do you wish we'd decided to change it?" Kate asked. "We still could. It would just be more paperwork and he'd never remember."

Castle shook his head. "Morris and Gale deserve the tribute and I don't think I could picture him as being called anything else, especially with the red hair. A little red sports car seems to fit."

"He's already got sucking up fuel down," Kate noted with a quirk of her lips.

He just loves his mother's incredible assets," Castle responded. "Like father like son." Castle consulted his watch. "It's still early. I suspect Morris and Gale will be sticking around to make plans with the elders, but we could check out and get started back as soon as M.G.'s finishes his breast banquet." Castle sniffed. "And we change him."

"Castle, I think I'd rather stay, at least for today, maybe longer," Kate decided. "This is the first time we've been alone, except for M.G., since our honeymoon and the first time we've away from the city since Olivia put me on restrictions. I can see why the Albus decided to settle here. It's actually pretty beautiful, especially near the lake where the hotel is. You couldn't enjoy that the last time we were here. Alexis is in the Hamptons with Paige and her family. She's not going to need you. Unless you have book related stuff you have to deal with, there's no reason to rush back to the city."

Castle kissed the hair at her temple. "I have absolutely nothing book related I can't handle on my laptop. I would love to enjoy this city by a lake with my wife and son, especially since I can skip the transfusions this time. So are you proposing we turn this into our first mini-vacation as husband, wife, and rugrat in training?" Castle wondered.

"I guess I am," Kate agreed.

"Well in that case," Castle proclaimed, "as soon as our son has finished gorging himself, let the holiday commence!"


	79. Chapter 79

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 79

Quite understandably, Bellville didn't have much of a tourist industry. The hotels were mostly for travelers who arrived on business or for a pleasant stopping point on the way to Canada. There was no guidebook and no website extolling the pleasures of the area. There were, however, a few postings advertising boats for rent. Kate perused one on her phone. "Castle, this one would be nice. It comes with all the equipment we'd need to fish. Dad and I used to go fishing on the lake by his cabin all the time. We would go out early in the morning and have fresh fish to fry up for breakfast. I really liked it."

"Well that would explain why you're not squeamish about dead bodies," Castle surmised. "You practiced on piscean corpses. But what are we going to do with fish here, unless you're planning to hijack the hotel restaurant kitchen?"

"We could ask to borrow their freezer, assuming we actually catch anything," Beckett replied. "Dad taught me how to clean them. I could wrap up the fillets and we could get an ice chest to take them home in."

"Okay, I'll see if I can book the boat," Castle agreed.

* * *

The lake was mostly calm with just a gentle rocking motion that happily put M.G. to sleep. Kate baited her hook and expertly threw her line in the water. Castle scrunched up his face. "Worms? Really Kate?"

"Oh c'mon, Castle, the master of the macabre afraid of a few squiggly creatures?"

Castle squared his shoulders. "Not afraid, just eww. I like my worms coming out of sand dunes and breathing spice."

"I didn't know you were into Frank Herbert, Castle. Well you do have the blue eyes for it. I wonder if M.G. will keep his? Oh but the red hair! Does that make him Harkonnen?"

Castle gave a little shiver. "I haven't seen many beastly signs in Alexis or Mother. Well, maybe Mother, but I think we may be safe on that one."

Kate felt a pull on her line. "Oh Castle, I think I've got something." Kate carefully snagged her catch and brought it into the boat. "You may hate the worms Castle but the fish don't. Looks like we're at least going to get a dinner out of this trip."

* * *

Castle was rocking M.G. when Kate returned from the restaurant kitchen with a puzzled look on her face. "Something go wrong with your fish carving project?" Castle asked.

"Not wrong Castle, strange." Kate held up a gold coin. "I found this inside one of the fish."

"A coin inside a fish? Kate, that could be a clue to a treasure! Maybe pirates sank a boat in this lake."

"Pirates, Castle? The lake doesn't even connect to the ocean. How would a pirate ship sail into it? Maybe it was just someone's lucky piece," Kate offered. "They might have accidentally dropped it overboard."

Kate, don't ruin my fun with your logic," Castle protested. "Anyway there are lots of ways a treasure could get in a lake. Maybe some vamps brought it from Europe and then sunk it in the lake to keep it from ancient enemies. I need to research this."

M.G. let out a cry of protest when Castle sprang from the rocking chair. Castle gave him a comforting cuddle. "Sorry, Peanut." He turned to Kate. "Can you take him? I need my laptop. And let me see that coin."

Kate drowsed in the rocking chair as M.G. took his evening meal and Castle pored over his computer. "Found it!" Castle exclaimed.

Kate opened her eyes. "Found what?"

"The coin, I know what it is. It's from the 'Great Recoinage' in 1816 when Britain returned to the gold standard. This is a gold sovereign."

"Castle, what would a two hundred year old British coin be doing in a lake in upstate New York?"

"Kate, that's what's delicious about this. There were a bunch of them stolen from a museum in the 1920's. The museum itself was suspected of receiving the coins under suspicious circumstances. They closed down during the depression and the theft was never investigated further. After the robbery, the thieves, the Scarpacci brothers, were thought to be headed for Canada, but they were never seen again. The Canadian border is not far from the other side of the lake. Maybe the Scarpaccis were taking the coins across and their boat sank. There were about 1500 of those coins, Kate. Each one would have been eight grams of twenty-two carat gold. Just the gold alone would be worth about $400,000. The historical value might add to that. Kate, your fishing trip may have turned into a treasure hunt."

"Castle, are you serious?" Kate asked."How are you going to hunt for treasure in the lake?"

"I just have to find someplace that rents scuba gear," Castle answered excitedly. "The lake's not that deep. It shouldn't be dangerous. I wouldn't have to worry about bends or sharks. I learned how to dive on a trip to the Galapagos. I've done the Great Barrier Reef and caves in Mexico too. I might even be able to find a dive buddy at a dive shop."

Neither Bellville nor any of the surrounding communities boasted a dive shop. Castle did manage to track down a retired Navy Seal named Horace Feeley who owned his own equipment and was up for an adventure. He was also an avid fisherman and owned his own boat. After buying out a fair percentage of the local market's stock of high end newborn diapers, the Castles took off with him for the spot where Kate had caught her treasure laden fish. Castle and Horace made three dives while Kate waited above, under a shade which shielded both her and M.G. from the bright sunlight overhead and the reflection from the water. Castle emerged discouraged. "Nothing?" she asked sympathetically.

"Fish and parts that fell off boats," Castle replied. "I almost got caught on an old hunk of wood, but nothing resembling treasure."

"Well Castle, couldn't that be a good sign?" Kate inquired. "If a boat went down here a hundred years ago, wouldn't there still be pieces of it around?"

Castle grinned. "You know you're right! Horace said we'd have to recharge the tanks and he wants to eat lunch, but we can try again later.

Lunch proved to be enormous hoagie sandwiches and chips, which both Kate and Castle consumed with relish, while M.G. stuck to his liquid diet. After allowing enough time for their feast to settle, Castle and Horace dived again. This time Castle emerged vibrating with excitement. He triumphantly showed Kate a rotted piece of leather bearing a "Sc." "It's from the Scarpacci Brother's, Kate! I just know it! This probably came off a satchel they had the coins in. The treasure is down there somewhere. Horace is going to round up some of his buddies and we're going to find it!"

M.G. kicked his feet and waved his arms in rhythm with his father's enthusiasm while his mother smiled and rolled her eyes. Horace steered the boat back to shore to begin preparations in earnest for the hunt.


	80. Chapter 80

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 80

It took a couple of days for Horace to gather his diving compatriots, which gave the Castles some down time. They shopped for extra clothes for M.G., finding some remarkable handiwork. "Castle, I don't think I've ever seen stitching this fine, Kate remarked over a tiny garment she pulled on a squirming M.G., as she changed him on their bed at the hotel.

"Something tells me the seamstress had a lot of years to practice," Castle quipped. "Maybe centuries. How are you doing studying for your exam? Are the online materials helpful?"

Kate sighed as she snapped the last snap and put M.G. back in his front carrier. "Honestly Castle, I'm finding some great updates on the newest iterations of paperwork, but as far as actual police work goes, there's not much that's new except for updated computer techniques. Ryan is a lot better at that kind of thing than I am, for that matter so are you. I might be asking for some help."

"I stand ready at your service," Castle declared. "Oh, that didn't come out the way I meant it. No, anyway I'll be working on some edits to my latest chapter, so I'm handy anytime you need me. Ooh! That didn't come out right either."

Air was forced from Kate's mouth as she failed to suppress a laugh. "That's alright Castle. I know what you meant. I think I'll actually be glad when your treasure hunt picks up again and I get away from the finer details of bureaucratic navigation."

"Are you having second thoughts?" Castle asked. "Paperwork has hardly been your favorite part of being a cop. You certainly weren't happy with it when you were on restricted duty. Is that really how you want to spend your your time?"

"What do you mean Castle? What choice do I have? If I want to have time with M.G. I can't be the kind of cop I was before, going after leads 24/7. I need more structure, more certainty."

"Maybe there's another way to do it," Castle offered. "Tanu wants to expand and he's looking for an investor. We could have our own satellite office, investigate on our own schedule. We could even set up a nursery in the office; have someone to look after M.G. just for a bit, if we're out together on a case. We missed the last P.I. exam in July, but there's one in January. You qualify with your experience as a cop and I might just slip under the wire with mine as a consultant, especially if I get Bob Weldon to pull some strings. We could both just be operatives until then. Then in a few years when M.G.'s in preschool we'd have even more time on the streets together. And when he's in regular school, we'd have even more than that, although there's no way I want him to be a latch-key kid."

"Castle, how long have you been thinking about this?" Kate asked.

"Tanu approached me about investing right before our wedding, but I've really been mulling it over since you told me you didn't want me to have to raise M.G. alone. I had no idea your opportunity on the task force would come up. I put the P.I idea aside when it did, but Kate, I don't want you to have to give up doing what you really love if you don't have to. And I don't want to give up doing it with you. I want to track down bad guys together until we're old enough so we really do have to wear gumshoes."

Furrows appeared in Kate's usually smooth brow. "I don't know Castle. Just because the exam is all about paperwork, that doesn't mean the job would be. I'd be supervising a lot of cops and I could still be boots on the ground if I really wanted to be. Even as a captain, Montgomery still goes to the important take-downs. I think I need to talk to the lieutenant from robbery and see how things really work for him before I try to make any kind of decision. In the meantime I want to get everything I'll need for the exam perfect, otherwise I won't have a choice."

"That makes sense," Castle agreed. "I'll support you whatever you decide. Just know that you have options."

Kate walked over to kiss her husband, carefully avoiding crushing M.G. between them. "Do you know how amazing you are?"

Castle pushed back the hair that fell in her face from the awkward angle of her approach. "Feel free to remind me anytime."

* * *

Five divers including Castle were on the deck of the boat. Kate had wondered if she should stay behind with M.G.. but the respite from her studies was too tempting and M.G. hardly fussed at all when he was on the water. So she joined the hunt as observer and cheerleader.

Horace's friends were Bart, another retired Seal, and Corbin and Manuel, both from Marine Special Operations. The men would be working in teams, with Horace, Castle, and Bart forming one team and Corbin and Manuel the other. They laid out a search plan based on where hunks of boat and the scrap of leather had been found. While they were submerged, Kate watched, waited, and sang sea shanties she and Castle had found on Youtube, to M.G.. They'd both discovered quickly that many of the words were not so subtle double entendres. She hoped that M.G. was too young for the meanings to penetrate his subconscious. Kate had found that the baby loved the sounds of both his mother and his father singing and gleefully moved his hands and feet to the rhythm of the raucous words. Even surrounded by water and sky, his eyes were fixed on his mother's face as she voiced the randy lyrics.

Bart clambered over the side of the boat followed by Castle and Horace, who helped pull Castle aboard. Castle held a large shard of wood to which traces of paint still clung, forming letters. Castle pulled his regulator aside and lifted his mask, barely able to contain himself. "This has to be a piece of the Scarpelli Brothers' boat, Kate. Look, the letters spell 'Mary A.' There was a boat stolen about the time they disappeared called the Mary Ann. They must have stolen it. We're close! We're really close!"

Kate laid M.G. in his bassinet and examined the piece of timber. It was exactly as Castle described. Once more Castle had taken a small clue and was well on his way to solving a big mystery. Perhaps as an investigator he would be just as incredible. She would have to consider the ins and outs of that future very carefully - and very soon.

A/N I looked up the requirements and process for obtaining a P.I. license in New York. Castle couldn't have done it the way he did in canon. The written test is only given twice a year and it takes experience, not just a course.


	81. Chapter 81

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 81

The teams returned to the water, energized by Castle's find. Lulled to sleep by the rocking boat and mother's milk, M.G. lay quietly in his bassinet. Kate retrieved her laptop from one of the boat's waterproof compartments, together with Castle's portable global wi fi hotspot. For once she was extremely grateful for his obsession with the latest gadgets. Even in the middle of the lake, she could easily connect to the internet. She had started an email conversation with Wil Patton, the lieutenant from robbery. Aware of Montgomery's plan, he'd been eager to help Kate, preferring to see the position filled from the Twelfth rather than have someone brought in from the outside. She'd asked for a description of his workdays and his idea of what hers might be like if she passed her exam and took on the task force. He'd been sending her his recollections of his cases.

The most recent one involved a transfer to the Twelfth, a Tom Demming. Kate knew him slightly. He'd been a friend of Esposito's when they'd both served at the Fifty-fourth. Every so often Tom would sneak up a floor to use the espresso machine Castle had bought for the break room. A couple of times, before she'd become engaged to Castle, Tom had tried to get Kate's attention. He was attractive in a vanilla sort of way: tall, fit, and good natured. His eyes were blue, but light blue like Ryan's, not deep blue like Castle's. And he didn't have the spark of whatever it was that really got to her, the spark she'd found in Castle. Still Tom was a good cop.

Wil gave Kate the particulars of a case that had involved both robbery and homicide and had taken place after Kate began her leave. The owner of a memorabilia store, Carl Burkham, had been found murdered in his shop. It had been clear the place had been ransacked. Assuming a robbery, Esposito had called Tom in for a consult and Patton agreed to lend him out. Tom instructed a clerk to make a complete inventory. The results were puzzling. Nothing was missing except an autographed photograph of George Reeves, the Superman from the early days of television. Reeves was a minor star at most and the photograph was worth less than a hundred dollars, even to a rabid Superman fan. The picture should not have been a motive for robbery or murder. However, Tom had been conscientious enough to do some research, discovering the mystery of Reeves' supposed suicide.

Kate chuckled to herself. Castle would have have known about the history of the case the minute he saw Reeves' name. Not only had a movie been made about it, but since Reeves had played Superman, he was part of the nerd lore Castle loved so well. Kate knew some of the story herself. There had been three theories of Reeves' death in 1959, at the age of forty-five. The accepted one was that he had killed himself because he has been typecast and his career had stalled. It was thought to be part of the mythological curse affecting portrayers of Superman. George Reeves was gone, Christopher Reeve had died after a valiant fight against paralysis resulting from a riding accident, and poor Dean Cain was making Lifetime movies. There were two other theories. One was that Reeves had been accidentally shot by his then fiancée Lenore Lemon. The far more interesting one was that it had been a hit. The story went that for some time Reeves had been a kept man by Toni Mannix, wife of mobster Eddie Mannix. He had thrown her over and she had been furious. Toni had eventually died of Alzheimer's disease, but legend had it that while she was still lucid she had confessed to putting out the contract. Tom had discovered the Hollywood controversy through his research. "Wikipedia would have done it," Kate thought to herself. Wil's story continued that Tom theorized there was something in the stolen photograph that was a clue to the real circumstances of the killing. Perhaps the killer of Burkham had been connected to Reeves' death. The original hit man, if one actually existed, would have been either dead or very up in years, but Demming asked Esposito and Ryan to check it out.

There were no fingerprints, but DNA from a drop of blood from where the killer had cut himself on a glass display case matched someone in the system, a Norvis Potter, who had been charged with another hit. Norvis' original case had been dismissed when a witness mysteriously disappeared. The stolen photograph was found at Norvis' apartment along with a safe deposit box key. Ryan traced the key to a bank in Brooklyn where he and Esposito found a stash of gold coins. The coins were traced to a dealer from whom they had been purchased online.

Kate's review of the case was interrupted by the arrival of Corbin and Manuel. They had found two more sovereigns wedged in two different sets of rocks on the lake bottom. They'd shown them to Castle, Horace, and Bart, who had indicated on a waterproof slate that they were going to continue looking along an imaginary line drawn through the lucky rocks. Corbin and Manuel took the opportunity to recharge their tanks, down a couple of bottles of water, and rest.

Kate returned to Wil's case. It seemed to her that Ryan and Esposito had done most of the heavy lifting. If robbery and homicide cases were combined on a regular basis, one of her tasks would be to make sure the tasks were taken up more or less evenly. Nonetheless Tom had made a good guess. The coins had been purchased with a transfer of funds from a Caymen Islands account. It took some effort on Ryan's part to find the owner of the account, but it was one Congressman Daryl Ishman. Ishman had made his fortune by annoying almost everyone with his massive sales of car alarms. It was unknown where he got his initial investment to build his plant and market the devices, but it was suspected it came from his father, Donny "The Iceman" Ishman. Iceman, on the surface a tough but legitimate businessman, had been suspected in several criminal enterprises, but had never been seen, or at least not photographed, in the company of known criminals. Daryl had always characterized his father as a hardworking successful entrepreneur from whom he learned the lessons of business and life. Donny was also rumored to have had relationship with Toni Mannix, but again, no evidence existed, and when asked, Daryl called the whole matter a story invented by a salacious press.

The man in the back of the photograph, clearly scoping George Reeves out, was Donny Ishman. Darryl had seen it in the window of the store while on a junket to New York with other congressmen. Unable to stop and obtain it without raising questions, he'd hired Norvis Potter, a distant relative, to steal it for him. The theft went wrong and Carl Burkham had been killed. When faced with the facts, Norvis Potter had flipped on Daryl Ishman in exchange for a break from the D.A.. California willingly extradited him and Ryan and Esposito gleefully took a couple of days in Southern California to pick him up and transport him back to New York.

Castle clambered aboard with Bart and Horace, proudly bearing more golden booty. Once he had been kissed and congratulated by Kate, he asked what she had been up to while M.G. slept. "Castle," Kate grinned, "Wil Patton such sent me some information. It's all about a case you would have loved!"

A/N George Reeves was real, as was the mystery surrounding his death. Toni and Eddie Mannix and Lenore Lemon were real as well. Ben Affleck stared in the fictionalized movie which was called _Hollywoodland_. The Ishmans were my invention, but there is a congressman from California with a similar name who made his fortune in car alarms. As far as I know, he's never put a hit out on anyone, but I'm sure there are any number of people who've been unceremoniously awakened by the shrieking of his wares and who wouldn't mind putting one out on him.


	82. Chapter 82

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 82

Several excursions later almost of the Scarpelli treasure had been found. The question remained: what to do with it? Since it was gold, by the New York laws of treasure trove, it would most likely be a matter of finders keepers. Kate insisted that the coins be turned over to the local authorities who would advertise for possible owners, but with the demise of the museum and the uncertainty of the coins provenance, it would be unlikely that anyone could establish a claim. Castle had discussed the situation with Horace, Bart, Corbin, and Manuel. They had all agreed that Castle's lawyers could begin to draw up papers for the establishment of a foundation for the use of the proceeds from their find. Part of the money would be used to aid wounded veterans and their families and part, administered by Stephen Morris, would be used to cure an exotic blood disease afflicting the residents of Bellville. Castle saw no need to specify the details of the disease.

The Castles were ready to go back to the city. Kate would be preparing for her exam as intensively as she could, with an infant who required so much of her very personal attention. Castle needed to answer the ever voracious call of Black Pawn for more chapters, both of Naked Heat and a revival of Derrick Storm. The trunk of the car was even fuller than it had been when they had set out, with an added collection of one-of-a -kind tiny garments. Castle wondered if some day there would be another little Castle to whom they could be passed. Or perhaps some day Alexis would marry and he'd have grandchildren. He shuddered at that thought. He was way too young to be a grandfather and despite the addition of M.G., Alexis would be his little girl forever.

The humidity of New York August descended like a smothering cloud as they approached the limits of the boroughs. Castle cranked up the air conditioning full blast. "This weather won't be good news for the precinct," Kate offered grimly. "There's nothing like this kind of sticky heat to make tempers flare. If there's any kind of an incident, it could easily boil over into a crisis."

"Let's hope not. But Kate," Castle reminded her, "you can't let that be your problem. You're still on leave and you have more than enough to to. As do I. We should hunker down in our climate controlled haven and let your brothers in arms handle things for a while yet."

The heat precipitated a crisis, but not the one Kate had envisioned. A leak was found in a nuclear power plant on Long Island necessitating it's shutdown. The loss of available electricity combined with the high power usage of cooling systems had caused Con Edison to initiate a series of rolling brownouts, rendering the loft less than livable. The Castles, as well as Martha, had made a decision to retreat to the Hamptons, where even when air conditioning was unavailable the breeze from the ocean could make things more bearable. Wearying of Paige's new obsession with Maroon 5, Alexis decided to join her family.

Castle had planned on starting work on a nursery in the Hamptons when M.G. was out of his bassinet and into a crib. But given the presence of the entire family, it seemed as good a time as any. Castle left the color scheme, something at which he had never excelled, to the females of the family. Kate and Alexis would have been satisfied with a simple powder blue for the walls, but Martha declared it boring and insisted on considering more interesting shades. Finally they agreed to visit the paint department of a home improvement mega-store together for inspiration, leaving Castle with a sweaty and irritable M.G..

After an hour of vainly trying to sooth the fretful baby, Castle decided on a visit to the beach, where the rhythm of the waves had always had a calming effect on Alexis. Bringing the portable shade that had been effective against the sun on the boat in Bellville, he set up a spot for himself and M.G. close enough to the ocean for some level of comfort.

M.G. was just closing his eyes to the raunchiest lullaby Castle knew, when Castle was hailed by The Hamptons' Police's Chief Brady. "I was hoping to find you Castle. I was thinking that you and Kate might be able to help out with a new problem around here."

Castle pointed down at M.G., now unfortunately reawakened. "Kate just had a baby and she's on leave. We're not doing police work right now. We're having enough trouble figuring out how to set up the nursery."

"Yeah, well congratulations Castle, but I don't need you guys to work on a case with me. I just need a little advice. We've had a rash of robberies. There doesn't seem to be a pattern to them. They're not all in one neighborhood and strange stuff has been taken. As far as I can tell, none of it is even valuable."

Castle was intrigued. "What kind of strange stuff?"

"Well all the shoes were stolen from three houses. Then there were a bunch of books, but nothing rare or collectible. Then towels were stolen from cabanas and all the radishes were stolen out of a garden." Brady shook his head in bewilderment. "None of it makes sense."

"Have you got any video or forensic evidence?" Castle inquired.

"There is some video, but the culprits were wearing Halloween masks, the cheap kind you could get anywhere. They also wore gloves. We haven't found any prints and there's no usable D.N.A.. I'm stumped, Castle," Brady admitted.

Given her possible future involvement with robbery, Castle knew that Kate would be interested, and he was fascinated himself. "Chief," he proposed. "come to dinner tonight and bring everything you have on the robberies with you. Between the two of us Kate and I might be able to come up with some kind of theory."

Brady extended an eager hand. "Thanks Castle, I appreciate it."

Knowing that if he sprang a dinner guest on Kate without prior warning, retribution would be sure to follow, Castle pulled out his cell phone to call her. Then he gathered up M.G. and all the baby accouterments and headed back to the house to start cooking.

M.G. loudly disapproved of anything except being in a carrier against his father's chest while Castle cooked, so Castle was extra conscious of steam and splatters, but he still managed to turn out a more than passable Chicken Cacciatore. He was proud that he managed to need only one band-aid after chopping his onions and peppers. When the women returned, Alexis helped with the salad and Martha fussed over the table setting while Kate took care of a hungry M.G..

After preparing the kitchen so that he could easily drop pasta in boiling water when Brady arrived, Castle sat on the bed opposite Kate's rocking chair. "I think he gained another pound while you were nursing," Castle commented, gazing at the replete and drowsy baby.

"It feels like it. I think I'm downing an extra thousand calories a day just to keep up with him," Kate admitted. "And the enticing smells floating out of the kitchen are driving me crazy."

Castle consulted his watch. "Brady should be here soon and you can dig in."

"Before he comes, tell me more about the robberies," Kate requested.

"They are weird Kate, definitely Beckett flavored - and Castle flavored too. It's like someone is having a 'Who Can Steal the Most Stupid Stuff," contest."

"Castle maybe you have something there. Maybe someone is."

The brackets around Castle's mouth deepened. "But who? And why?"

Kate smiled. "Castle, I think that's what Brady is hoping we can help him figure out. And it will help me get a handle on how I feel about doing robbery cases." She got up and laid a sleeping M.G. In his bassinet. Thankfully he didn't stir when the doorbell rang.


	83. Chapter 83

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 83

Brady twirled linguine onto his fork. "So Detective Beckett, we've had six robberies in all, at least that we know about. Someone stole two bushels of apples that were delivered to the Kershaws as a gift. Two bookcases worth of books were taken out of the rec room at the McDonald's place. That's where we got video of two people in Halloween masks. Three bags of redi-mix concrete were grabbed from the new walk the Perskys were putting in and Natalie Parker's entire collection of vintage t-straps and platforms was stolen. Then there were the radishes from the Clumpsky's garden, and all the towels from all the cabanas on Birch Circle."

"Wait a minute," Castle interrupted. "There are two alphabetical groupings. Apples, books, concrete - 'A, B, C,' and radishes, shoes, and towels, 'R,S,T.' That can't be a coincidence. It's like someone, maybe more than one someone, has an alphabetical list and they're ticking things off."

"It sure sounds like it," Kate agreed. "The video, did you bring it with you, Chief?"

"Yeah, I have it on a thumb drive."

Kate nodded. "Good we can look at it after dinner. Maybe we can see something besides anonymous crooks in Halloween masks."

Kate was still licking the last of Castle's improvised chocolate ice cream pie from the corner of her mouth when she inserted Brady's drive into her laptop. Brady and Castle watched the screen over her shoulder as video of a robbery played. "Castle, "Kate asked, "is that some kind of logo on one of the thieves' shirt?"

"Run it back," Castle instructed, staring hard at the screen. "It is, Kate, and I think I recognize it. There's a gaming parlor two villages over that has that on the t-shirts they give the players when they are in tournaments. I got one. I think I might still have it." Castle ran to the bedroom to check in his walk in closet and returned with a brightly colored shirt in hand. He held it up for comparison to the image on the screen.

"That's it," Kate confirmed. "So at least one of our thieves has participated in a tournament at that parlor. We should go over there tomorrow."

"We could go tonight," Castle suggested. "Manny, who owns the place, has it open pretty much 24/7 and he's usually there from about ten 'til six in the morning. That's when the night gamers come, to get around the schedules at their day jobs. You could give M.G. his midnight feeding and then we could leave him with Mother and Alexis for a couple of hours while we pay Manny a visit."

"Would that be all right with you, Chief?" Kate asked. "I know this was just supposed to be a consult."

"No, it's fine," Brady responded enthusiastically. "You've already gotten further than we have and it sounds like Castle has an in with Manny. I'll get out of your hair and if you find out anything, you can let me know tomorrow."

* * *

Manny's Gaming Emporium was alive with activity when the Castles arrived at one A.M.. Gamers occupied stations in front of large flat screens while neon dragons lashed their tails from the walls. Beeps and sound effects echoed through a cavernous room. Manny was at his post on a high stool behind a tall desk, keeping track of the action. "Hey Ricky," he greeted Castle as the couple arrived. "Long time no see. I heard you got married again. Is this your new bride?"

Kate extended a hand. "Kate Beckett, Detective Kate Beckett."

"Manny," Castle interjected, smiling fondly at his wife, "Kate and I are helping Chief Brady out on a case and it looks like one of the perpetrators might be one of your customers. Tell me, have you you heard of any kind of weird game going on in the area, maybe involving the alphabet somehow?"

"Not a game," Manny mused, running his fingers through an unruly mop of overlong hair. "But there is some kind of reality show thing - on the web, not regular TV. Some of my customers have been getting into it. Actually it's cut into business a little bit. The contestants are supposed to come up with things responding to different groupings of letters in the alphabet. They record themselves getting the stuff and upload the video to the game site. The only rule is that they can't buy anything They have to find it or take it. The crew that gets the most stuff wins. It's mostly for bragging rights, but there's also some kind of trophy and title involved."

"That sounds like just what our culprits are doing. Do you have the URL for the site?" Kate inquired.

"I do," Manny offered, "at least where you can go to watch the action. It's by paid subscription. That's how the operators make their money. And I think they do pretty well. The site has gotten very popular. But the players have to register and get passwords to upload their video on a separate site and I don't have that one for that. It's some kind of word of mouth thing doesn't show up on search engines."

Castle clapped his friend on the shoulder. "What you have will be great Manny. Thanks."

* * *

Brady leaned over the counter in the kitchen of the beach house, regarding the website Castle displayed on his laptop. "That's it. It's a different angle but it's the McDonald's robbery. This is taking reality TV to new depths."

"Oh I don't know," Castle mused, "I think the one where they ate the cockroaches was worse, but at least they weren't committing any crimes, except of course against the human gag reflex."

"So how do we track the people behind this down?" Brady asked.

"We already tried the straightforward way, looking at whois," Castle explained. "We just came up with the contact information of the company who sold the registration of the website. Whoever it is paid the fee for privacy. I did the same thing on my website. It's supposed to be protection from hackers, spammers, and data miners."

"These guys are protecting themselves to commit a crime, not avoid being a victim," Kate continued. "You already have proof of involvement in criminal activity. You shouldn't have any problem getting a warrant for the information about who runs the website."

"Great," Brady exclaimed. "I'll get on that. I don't know how to thank you guys."

"Glad to help," Kate told him.

"Especially if you get out of here and let us catch a nap while the baby is sleeping," Castle added. "Hard enough to do that anyway and late night last night."

"Oh, of course," Brady agreed. "You guys get some rest. I can take it from here. I'll just show myself out."

"Castle," Kate asked when Brady had departed, "did you really want to go to sleep or were you just trying to get him out of here?"

Castle extended a hand to Kate. "Who knows how long M.G. will stay down? But we can go to the bedroom, and like Dr. Gale said, do whatever we find comfortable. That might involve sleeping - eventually."

Kate twined her fingers with his. "I'm all for comfort, Castle. Let's see how we can comfort each other."


	84. Chapter 84

A Different Shade of Pale

Chapter 84

Kate's hand nestled in Castle's as they lay side by side on the extra large bed, pleasantly on the verge between waking and sleeping. "How much time do you think we have left before M.G. wakes up?" Castle wondered muzzily.

"I'm amazed that he hasn't already," Kate admitted. "We weren't exactly quiet."

"No we weren't," Castle agreed, a smile ghosting his lips. "But all in all, I took great comfort in our activities. Have I ever told you that you have a magic tongue?"

"No, I think that's a new one, Castle," Kate decided. "Yours isn't so bad either. And we already knew you have magic fingers."

"Hmm," Castle mused, bright fantasy images dancing behind his lids, "with all this magic, maybe I should write a sword and sorcery version of Nikki Heat. I could call it Nick Off the Feet."

Kate would have rolled her eyes if they'd been open. "Needs work, Castle, a lot of work."

"Speaking of work," Castle said, "how did you enjoy the brief foray into solving a robbery?"

"Castle, you actually did most of the solving, but it's always good to put pieces of a puzzle together. The sense of justice is missing though. When I solve a homicide, I know that I can give a wife, a husband, sister, brother, or lover, some kind of closure. I can help them make peace with what happened. With robbery it's just about things. Those things may be very dear to someone's heart. I can certainly understand grieving for missing shoes. But it's not the same."

"Hey, if someone stole all your stilettos you wouldn't be the only one who'd grieve," Castle put in.

Kate's eyes popped open as she laughed. "I'm sure, Castle. But my point is, I think for the most part, there's more capacity to improve people's lives solving homicides. If I get the lieutenant's position, I'm glad it will involve both."

Castle turned to her. "From the sound of it, doing the P.I. thing doesn't sound like nearly so attractive an option to you. I don't think we'd be solving many murders."

"Castle, I may not have a choice. I might blow the exam. But if I do have one, I think I'd rather take the task force."

"You're not going to blow the exam. Kate," Castle assured her. "Robbers and murderers in New York will be quaking in their boots - or their stilettos as the case may be."

* * *

It was late October, just about the time of year Lockerby's bite had started the chain of events that brought Castle and Kate together. Kate had received the stellar results of her lieutenant's exam two weeks earlier and they had been passed on to Captain Montgomery, who put his plan for the Robbery Homicide Task Force in motion.

M.G. had grown too big for his bassinet and Castle was setting up a crib in the corner of Kate's new office. It was just one floor down from homicide, but in many ways a world away. Kate looked out on a different bullpen. She could easily reach Ryan and Esposito, either by phone or just by walking up a flight of stairs, but the separation was jarring. After weeks of interviews and an exhaustive background check by Tanu, Kate and Castle had engaged Miranda, a part time nanny. Kate would have the opportunity to be in the field for critical or even just interesting cases, but she would be spending a lot of time in the precinct, with Castle sometimes serving as her eyes in the field, as he had when she was on restricted duty.

Castle turned the last screw, cursing as he pinched his thumb and sticking the wounded digit in his mouth. "You're going to have to watch your language soon, Castle," Kate remarked. "You never know what M.G. might pick up. The first word out of his mouth might start with an 'S' or an 'F' instead of a 'D' or an 'M.'"

"It's possible," Castle agreed. "Alexis' first word was denouement. I know I used it a lot in phone conversations with my publisher, but I don't know exactly when she heard it."

"Well better denouement than what you just said," Kate offered. "But I think you finished just in time. Miranda should be bringing M.G. in any minute."

"Yeah, and the delivery guy should be here with an Espresso machine for this break room too, so we won't have to go upstairs to get a decent cup of coffee. Honestly, I don't know how these guys have managed on the battery acid they have down here." Castle sucked on his thumb again. "I paid a premium for the privilege, but at least I won't have to do the set up for the isle of foamy richness. Ooh set-ups. I need to check on everything for the party tonight. Thank God Maddie is doing the food. We know that will be perfect, but mother wanted a hand in the decorations and that could be a catastrophe in the making. If you and Alexis had let her do the mandarin orange and sapphire blue she wanted for the nursery in the Hamptons, M.G. would never get any sleep there again. I need to make sure she doesn't turn the loft into some kind of pumpkin palace."

"Castle, I think you may have done that already. You and Alexis must have carved twenty jack-o-lanterns."

Castle stuck out his lower lip. "Jack-o-lanterns? I'll have you know that each one of those pumpkins is a work of art, a deep exploration into the use of negative space. Besides, after the we're done with them for the party, Alexis and I can take them to the homeless shelter for the kids. A couple of our failures will find success as pies or muffins too. I don't need Maddie for that."

"Will you be eating them with pumpkin spice lattes?" Kate asked, half joking.

Castle stuck out his tongue and wrinkled his nose. "Ugh! I never could quite get into those. I have added pumpkins to my repertoire of hearts and Christmas trees for barrista art though. I should go. See you at home later?"

"Mmm." Kate acknowledged, already examining case files on her desk. "Yeah."

Castle pressed a quick kiss to her hair before hurrying out.

* * *

" _The Monster Mash_ blasted over the revelers at the party from speakers high on the wall of the loft. Kate had been concerned that the music might disturb M.G., but the baby was all smiles as Castle, as a space cowboy, carried him around in his pumpkin costume, suitably topped by a quickly growing wavy red mop. Castle had proposed dying the crown of M.G.'s hair green, but Kate had put a quick end to that idea, so Castle had fashioned a tiny green baby stem hat instead, which M.G. continually removed.

A tuxedoed Esposito made a grand entrance as Jaimie Bond with Toni Gonzalez on his arm as the Bond Bolivian agent, Camille Montes Rivero. Ryan followed with his girlfriend Jenny O'Malley as the Irish god Dagda and the battle goddess, The Morrigan. Lanie made her appearance as a succubus, drawing the eye of every single, and many of the married men in the room.

Black Pawn author, Thurston Powell, sharply dressed as Pinhead, was making his once a year visit to New York from the wilds of Beverly Hills. "Hey Castle," he called. "I expected you to wear something scarier. The vampire costume you had on last year was the most convincing one I've ever seen. You even had the white skin. You looked like you were about to suck someone's blood any minute."

Castle swallowed and cleared his throat before he replied. "Yeah, well, I think vampires have been way overdone now don't you? I don't think I'm ever going to be a vampire again."

Kate came and smiled up at her husband, placing a reassuring hand on his arm. "I'll second that. Besides," she grinned saucily, "I've always wanted to ride a cowboy."

Finis

A/N This is the end of my Castle vampire saga. Halloween is past and Thanksgiving is soon to arrive. I'll be using the holiday, at least until the Winter Ficathon, for what will be happening during Rick and Kate's current time out. They can always use things to be thankful for, as can we all. Thanks for staying with me on this strange ride. Love, Sally.


End file.
